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Journalist: Mykhaylo Mudryk too expensive for Arsenal as £61m price tag emerges
We’re delighted to welcome freelance journalist Alex Barker, also known as Euro Expert, who has worked for Breaking The Lines, GFFN and more, as our exclusive columnist. Each week he will be giving his views on the biggest talking points on Wonderkids across the UK…
Mykhaylo Mudryk is not yet worth the £61m Shakhtar Donetsk are demanding from Arsenal for his signature, despite being compared to Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.
The Ukraine international has burst onto the scene this season with electric performances in the UEFA Champions League, attracting interest from the likes of Arsenal and Everton.
But after Everton had bids rejected in the summer transfer window Fabrizio Romano says that Shakhtar’s new asking price is somewhere between £52-61m, an amount Barker believes would be “too much too soon.”
“I actually looked at him just over a year ago when he was getting nicknamed I believe as the ‘Ukrainian Neymar’,” he told The Football Wonderkids.
“You can see where that kind of comes from when you watch him. He’s got so much pace but also so much skill and I think that’s the most interesting thing about him.
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“Yes he’s got so much skill, but he can change direction and make good decisions at such high speed and that’s what really sets him apart, because there are plenty of good dribblers in the world and plenty of quick players. But to be able to make these good decisions at such high speeds, is like an Mbappe trait. That’s why he’s so exciting.
“His goal contributions haven’t necessarily been so high, even before the war in Ukraine when Shakhtar were playing regularly in the league. He wasn’t getting a tonne of minutes if I remember rightly under Roberto Di Zerbi.
“He was a bit more of a rotation option. He’s still raw, but he’s got that unique ability that the right coach could really make something out of.
“My gut says €60-70m (£52-61m) is too much too soon. I’d like to check the transfer record coming out of Russia or Ukraine, that side of the world. I’m sure it’s much, much lower than that.
“While he’s looking very good, he’s not done out of this world things yet. But then again if Antony can go for €100m then maybe that is the going rate. But even then I’d be a bit hesitant with that.”
In other Arsenal news, the club want to tie up new deals for Saka, Saliba and Martinelli