How Chelsea beat Arsenal to sign Mykhailo Modric right under their noses

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On Saturday morning, it appeared that Mykhailo Modric would join Arsenal. Just over 24 hours later, he was unveiled at Stamford Bridge, after Chelsea made an audacious transfer move to take on Arsenal and sign the Ukraine winger for £88.5m.

Modric was confirmed as a Chelsea player in the 22nd minute of their victory over Crystal Palace and was presented to the crowd at half-time.

Chelsea snatched up Arsenal’s signing after going through the back door and quickly striking deals for both the 22-year-old and Shakhtar Donetsk over the weekend.

Co-owner Bagdad Eghbali and new head of recruitment Paul Winstanley were key to Chelsea’s plan, as they flew to Turkey on a private jet early Saturday for talks with Shakhtar chairman Rinat Akhmetov in Antalya.

While Igbali and Winstanley worked on a £62m deal, manager Graham Potter held positive talks with Modric in a call-up endorsed by Shakhtar.

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Modric showed a clear desire to join Arsenal and was regularly posting on social media to show that he was watching their matches. But it was during those conversations with Potter that he was assured he would go straight into the first team as Chelsea set out their vision for him.

Potter is a fan of the Ukraine winger and believes his pace and creativity could be just the spark his team needs to reignite their struggling season.

By Saturday night, Egbali and Winstanley were on their way back to London, having sealed the deal.

Arsenal were willing to pay what Chelsea had paid upfront, but crucially the Blues offered £26.5m in add-ons, which the Gunners were not willing to match.

Shakhtar Ahmadov’s chairman confirmed that £20 million of the fee would go to Ukrainian soldiers battling Russia, while Chelsea agreed to play a friendly in “Ukrainian Donetsk” after the war.

For Arsenal, the loss of Modric was a major setback in their attempts to strengthen their squad for a title challenge. But Mikel Arteta said they have to “discipline” the transfer market, after Chelsea have surpassed their spending since last summer to over £400m.

Additions to the Chelsea deal revolve around the Blues winning the Premier League, as well as making domestic and Champions League appearances. He signed an eight-and-a-half-year contract on salaries of around £150,000 a week, higher than Arsenal were willing to offer.

His long-term contract allows Chelsea to spread the fee over that period into their financial accounts, which in accounting terms means they pay out £10m a year to help them comply with fair financial regulations.

Modric followed on from the Directors’ Box on Sunday, as Chelsea beat Palace 1-0 to end their run of three consecutive defeats and relieve some of the pressure on Potter.

Chelsea’s move for Modric may have been quick, but their interest is long-term. They first spotted it in 2019, and recently, new recruiting analyst Kyle McCauley has been tracking it.

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Shakhtar were first made aware of a concrete interest from Chelsea on 30 December. The Blues then hosted Shakhtar sporting director Darijo Srina at Stamford Bridge on January 5 for talks during their match against Manchester City.

While Chelsea was talking to Srna, Arsenal was often engaging with Shakhtar CEO Sergey Balkin.

It was an ideal scenario for Shakhtar, who had two elite sides fighting for their stellar assets, meaning they could hold out steadily as they held out for £88.5m.

Arsenal were confident of signing Modric and were told the player wanted to join them. But they had set fees they were willing to pay and were not willing to be drawn into a bidding war.

They had hoped Shakhtar would soften their position, but Chelsea’s interest changed the picture. In the end, Arsenal was simply blown out of the water.

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