Arsenal face Chelsea transfer battle over 'highly-rated' £85million star

Arsenal are in yet another three-way transfer battle it would appear with Chelsea currently leading the way in the pursuit of Shakhtar Donetsk's star midfielder Georgiy Sudakov. Sukadov's recent performances have attracted the eyes of several clubs across the continent with TEAMTalk reporting Chelsea sit at the front of the queue.

Three English Premier League clubs have reportedly spoken to the Ukrainian club about the possibility of a deal with Chelsea having made further contact on Wednesday. The Blues will be looking to beat both the Gunners and Manchester United to his signature with all three sides having supposedly made calls to the Eastern European club.

The Ukrainians supposedly want €100m (£85m) for their prized-midfielder and while Arsenal had been in a strong position to procure Sukadov's services, it would now appear this 'strength' has been weakened. The Red Devils and their inter-city rivals Manchester City have also been keen but have not yet as much contact or effort in drawing up a deal.

Serie A sides Juventus and Napoli have also made contact with the 21-year-old saying - as reported by TeamTalk - "I know nothing about offers from (City and Barcelona). However, (Shakhtar director) Sergei Anatolyevich Palkin informed me about offers from Juventus and Napoli. Shakhtar rejected Napoli's €40 bid."

The sources have also added that the last thing the Italian sides want is a bidding war against the Premier League side as the Serie A sides do not hold the financial power that their English rivals do. The 21-year-old midfielder is reportedly ticking all the boxes for Chelsea and if they are to go ahead with this deal, it could see the Blues back off in the race for Napoli's Victor Osimhen.

Born in Brianka, Ukraine, Georgiy (or Heorhiy) Sudakov joined Shakhtar in 2020 and has made 59 league appearances for the side, making his debut in the 2020/21 UEFA Champions League winning away match against Real Madrid. He has 12 Ukrainian Premier League goals and has made 12 international appearances at senior level, scoring his only goal in Ukraine's 2-0 win over North Macedonia in a UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying fixture.