9 players Arsenal should buy instead of caving to Shakhtar

If Mykhaylo Mudryk costs £88m, here are some options to consider instead

Mykhaylo Mudryk has all the potential in the world. But that still doesn’t mean Arsenal can or should spend £88 million on him.

Yes, players with potentially bright futures should cost a lot of money. Shakhtar have a right to ask for whatever they want. But buyers also have a right to say no, and move on.

A €100 million transfer would make Mudryk, who’s started a grand total of 40 games in the Ukrainian Premier League and the Champions League, the fifth-most expensive under-23 player ever. More expensive than Neymar, and behind only Paul Pogba, João Félix, Ousmane Dembélé and Kylian Mbappé. He’d cost the same as the current two most expensive Ukrainian Premier League departures combined! There’s just not a precedent here.

So what should Arsenal do? Three words: No thank you. Here are some players to consider instead.