Sergei Palkin: "Before the last meeting, Arsenal were closer to signing Mudrik than Chelsea"

Shakhtar CEO Serhiy Palkin commented on the transfer of midfielder Mykhailo Mudryk to Chelsea in an interview with The Athletic.

“I realized that Mudrik would move to Chelsea days ago when Chelsea representatives arrived here - this is co-owner Behdad Egbali and director of transfers Paul Winstanley. They arrived in Antalya. Before they arrived, I didn't know that Chelsea were close to signing Mudrik because I had the same contact with Arsenal as I did with Chelsea.

I can say even more: I met Arsenal more often than Chelsea. Before this last meeting, Arsenal were close or slightly closer to an agreement than Chelsea. How many times have I met Arsenal? Except for telephone conversations, three times,” Palkin said.