Arsenal have been warned they will have to splash out more than £100million to sign Mykhaylo Mudryk, who has drawn favourable comparisons to Jack Grealish.
The Ukrainian winger has long been linked with a potential switch to north London, having also been tracked by the likes of Premier League rivals Everton and Brentford last summer.
Mikel Arteta is known to be keen on adding a new winger to his squad as leaders Arsenal look to sustain their surprise title challenge in the New Year, with Facundo Torres of Orlando City also a target.
However, the latest reports from The Athletic’s David Ornstein suggest that Mudryk is indeed the Gunners’ transfer priority when the window re-opens for business in January.
He claims that talks are already happening, with the 21-year-old keen to make the switch from Shakhtar Donetsk, for whom he has scored 12 goals and registered 17 assists in 44 senior appearances so far.
However, Shakhtar legend and director of football Darijo Srna has publicly stated that anyone wishing to sign Mudryk next month faces a hefty nine-figure sum.
The Croatian drew comparisons between the talented youngster and England playmaker Jack Grealish, whom Manchester City broke the British transfer record to sign in a mammoth £100m deal with Aston Villa last summer.
“Who wants to sign Mudryk has to pay big amount of money — otherwise our president will not sell him,” Srna told Spanish newspaper Marca.
“Jack Grealish was sold for more than 100m and Mudryk’s level is not lower.’