Jose Mourinho has poked criticism at Chelsea after the club spent £87m to sign Mykhaylo Mudryk from Shakhtar Donetsk.
Chelsea hijacked Arsenal’s move for the winger in stunning fashion this month, quickly coming to an agreement with the Ukrainian club. The Gunners had long eyed a move for the 21-year-old, but saw several offers turned down before the Blues swooped in.
With Chelsea struggling under Graham Potter, they quickly completed a deal to sign Mudryk. To do so, they agreed to pay out Shakhtar’s £87m asking price, through a combination of an up-front fee & add-ons – which Arsenal were reluctant to do.
The 21-year-old enjoyed a superb first half of the campaign with the Ukrainian side with 11 goals in 19 games, including three strikes in the UEFA Champions League group stage.
An academy graduate of the club, Mudryk has established himself as the star of a team decimated by player departures over the past year due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Former Chelsea boss Mourinho referenced the deal in his post-match press conference on Sunday after his team enjoyed a 2-0 win at home to Fiorentina in Serie A. It came after the discussion moved to January transfers at the club.
“I am not expecting anyone to arrive,” Mourinho said after the match, in quotes carried by La Gazzetta dello Sport.
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“The director (Tiago Pinto) was very honest and direct, he said things in an interview that a coach usually doesn’t like to hear. Coaches always want to hear we have lots of money, can buy option a, b, c, d, build an incredible team. That is the dream.
“I worked at clubs with those sorts of practically limitless funds. There are more and more clubs nowadays who fit that profile, but it’s not our profile. We work, we give our all, we work with the characteristics we’ve got.”
