Agent Mudryk! Chelsea close in on Ukrainian wonderkid

Tom Weber

• Updated: 6 May 2024 16:07 BST
• 4 min read

Chelsea have stepped up their pursuit of Georgiy Sudakov, according to a report.

The Ukrainian wonderkid is one of Europe's biggest prospects and is expected to be on the move this summer. Having starred for Shakhtar Donetsk and his national team in recent times, Sudakov's stocks have risen and he has been linked with pretty much every major side around Europe.

In the Premier League, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea have all been associated with the 21-year-old over the last few months, but it appears that the latter are particularly keen on landing the tireless midfielder. According to the Daily Mail, the Blues have officially opened talks with Shakhtar over a move.

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What will likely prove a major ace up Chelsea's sleeves is the fact that they already have Mykhailo Mudryk on their books. The winger is one of Sudakov's best friends and the two talk to each other on an almost daily basis.

Negotiation with Shakhtar won't be easy, however, as Chelsea already found out when they signed Mudryk.

Sudakov won't come cheap

Shakhtar are looking for a major paycheck from Sudakov's departure, knowing full well that he is a sought-after commodity and that they are under no pressure to sell him for a bargain. The youngster recently signed a new long-term deal and was fitted with a €150 million release clause.

While Shakhtar are smart enough to know that nobody will trigger this inflated clause, club president Sergei Palkin will demand a pretty penny. The Donetsk bigwig was at Stamford Bridge when Chelsea beat Everton 6-0 and he confirmed afterwards: "This summer window, he has a big chance to move to some big clubs. We have had some contacts with big clubs and some are not negotiating with us directly but are getting a feel for the summer environment."

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Shakhtar director of football Dario Srna recently revealed that Palkin will demand north of €60m for Sudakov: Shakhtar's president wants to get big money for Sudakov...There are not many such players in Europe. Sudakov will leave for a very large sum – I’m sure it will be more than €60m. All of Europe wants him."