Arsenal could make a move for Shakhtar Donetsk winger Mykhaylo Mudryk in the January transfer window, with the player having previously confirmed his interest in a transfer to the Emirates Stadium
Arsenal are set to try and bring a new forward to the club in January, with the Gunners shallow in depth on either wing. A host of names have been linked with a move to north London, but it appears that Ukrainian winger Mudryk is Arsenal's priority target in the upcoming transfer window.
The Gunners were interested in the 21-year-old in the summer, but his stock has risen since, with Shakhtar Donetsk said to be looking for around £85.9million for their star player. But, it's understood that a lower fee could be agreed upon for Mudryk in January.
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Mudryk seems keen on a move to the Gunners, with the winger having liked social media posts linking him with a move to Arsenal.
Speaking to CBS earlier this year, the Ukrainian said: "I think every guy dreams about the Premier League. It's hard to say [who his preferred move is] but Arsenal is a very good team, very good coach, I like the way they play."
So, if Arsenal were to sign Mudryk in January, how could he perform at the Gunners? We simulated the rest of the season with the forward in the squad to try and find out.
Arsenal's 2022/23 season simulated with Mykhaylo Mudryk
To set up this simulation, we used Football Manager 2023 to arrange for the 21-year-old to join Arsenal on January 1, 2022, using FM23 to run the simulation. We then simulated the remainder of the 2022/23 season to judge the impact Mudryk could have on the squad.
As expected, Mudryk wasn't a regular starter for Arsenal, with Arteta rotating the winger between the starting XI and the bench throughout the season. In total, the Ukrainian made 25 appearances in his first six months at the club, with seven of them starts.
Despite not playing 90 minutes regularly, Mudryk made the most of every appearance he made, scoring seven goals and registering five assists in a fantastic start to life in north London. Five goals and three assists came in the Premier League, meaning the 21-year-old managed eight goal contributions in 18 league games.
The winger won player of the match once, though away from his goals he wasn't the best performer, averaging a rating of 6.99 per game. His arrival added healthy competition to the squad, with the likes of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli continuing to perform at a high level throughout the season.
Jesus ended the season with 25 goals as the club's top scorer, whilst Saka managed 19 goals and eight assists, as well as the highest average rating in the squad. Martin Odegaard tallied an impressive 14 goals and 15 assists during the 2022/23 season, and Martinelli scored 11 and grabbed three assists, with the winger usually the chosen player to be replaced by Mudryk during games.
At the end of the 2022/23 season, Football Manager 2023 put together an overall best Arsenal XI, based on performances, statistics and other metrics. This is what it looked like:
Full Arsenal best XI: (4-2-3-1): Ramsdale; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Partey, Xhaka; Saka, Odegaard, Martinelli; Jesus.
Despite the impressive goal and assist tally that Mudryk produced, his average rating and lack of games compared to teammates saw the Ukrainian miss out on Arsenal's best XI. Martinelli and Saka started on either wing whilst Jesus led the line, leaving no space for Mudryk in the side.
Arsenal's results with Mudryk from the 2022/23 season
Mudryk's arrival added more goals to the Gunners squad, and the winger played a pivotal role in the Gunners winning the Premier League title in the 2022/23 season. Three of Mudryk's Premier League goals during his time at the club were matchwinners off the bench, ultimately helping tilt the title in Arteta's favour.
After 38 games, Arsenal ended the season with 90 points, four more than Man City in second. The Gunners won 28, drew six and lost four, with Mudrk's three-match winners all coming in the final eight games of the season. The 21-year-old scored in a 1-0 win over Brighton, a 3-2 win over Chelsea and a 2-1 win against Southampton.
Arsenal also ended the season as the league's top scorers, whilst only Man City conceded fewer goals than Arteta's side as well in a fantastic campaign for the Gunners, who reached a cup final as well in the simulation, but they were unable to make it a double for the season.
Facing north London rivals Tottenham in the FA Cup final, goals from Dejan Kulusevski and Harry Kane secured a 2-0 win for Spurs in a tough defeat for the Gunners. After a 0-0 draw at Old Trafford in the first leg, a 1-0 Man United win in the second saw Arsenal eliminated from the Europa League in the quarter-finals.
Overall, the Football Manager simulation predicts that Mudryk could be the perfect signing for Arsenal, becoming a vital member of the squad and helping push the Gunners to the Premier League title. The 21-year-old had a fantastic goal return as a rotation player and also pushed the current members of the squad to improve, making it a very exciting signing for Arsenal.
Do you think Mudryk would be a good signing for Arsenal? Let us know in the comments below!
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