Arsenal star admits helping Chelsea new boy come to terms with move after preferred transfer erupted

Oleksandr Zinchenko has revealed the advice he gave compatriot Mykhaylo Mudryk upon his move to Chelsea, after a move to his preferred side Arsenal fell through.

In the build up to the January transfer window, it became very apparent Mudryk wanted to sign for the Gunners. His social media posts for a period were essentially begging the north Londoners to snap him up.

They did their best to make his dream of playing for the club come true. Indeed, the start of the January window saw Mikel Arteta’s side undergo negotiations with Shakhtar Donetsk.

It took a little bit of time, but it seemed at one point that Arsenal were closing in on an agreement for Mudryk.

However, Chelsea swooped and offered north of the Gunners’ offer, and given negotiations had already been ongoing for a while, probably more than they would have been willing to offer.

As such, Mudryk signed for the Blues, in a deal which was reported to be worth around £88million.

Ahead of January, Arsenal full-back Zinchenko sent a reference to his club regarding his international teammate.

As such, it would seem he’d have also been disappointed when Mudryk instead moved to Stamford Bridge.

Zinchenko reveals January advice to Mudryk

The Gunners star has revealed that he gave advice to Mudryk in January, telling him to forget that he wanted to move to Arsenal.

“I said to him: ‘It’s gone already, it doesn’t matter what you wanted, what the other guys wanted’,” he told the Daily Mail.

That advice might well have helped him come to terms with moving to Chelsea over Arsenal. Indeed, Zinchenko advised his compatriot to put his full focus into his new club, despite things not panning out how he wanted.

“Now you’re a Chelsea player, you signed a long-term contract and you have only one option, only one way: direct and forward. Unfortunately he didn’t become an Arsenal player – as I wanted personally! – but it’s life,” he added.

Mudryk can become Chelsea star

In comparison to his time at Shakhtar, Mudryk has found his start at Chelsea tough. Indeed, he’d scored 10 goals and provided eight assists in 18 games in his final season in Ukraine.

That included five goal contributions in six Champions League games. In comparison, he’s managed just one assist in seven games so far with Chelsea and is yet to score.

His stats from his time at Shakhtar show he’s got the quality to come good. However, he’ll need some time to adjust to his new surroundings.

Whether or not doing so would have been easier had he moved to Arsenal, we’ll never know. There’d be less players to compete with for a spot than at Chelsea.

However, he’s likely giving his all to playing for the Blues, as he would have the Gunners. He should certainly be able to show his quality and begin to properly contribute to his new side soon.

READ MORE: Liverpool ‘willing to pay’ Man Utd and Arsenal target’s release clause, but bittersweet terms won’t please Klopp