Arsenal are once again chasing the signature of Barcelona winger Raphinha after seeing Mykhaylo Mudryk edge towards Chelsea.
That’s according to SportItalia, who claim that Arsenal have now made ‘exploratory contact’ to gauge whether a deal for Raphinha is possible.
It’s stated that Arsenal are ‘looking for possible alternatives’ to Shakhtar winger Mudryk and whilst no offer has been made for Raphinha, Edu wants him.
Arsenal have been left rocked by Mudryk seemingly heading to Chelsea.
The Gunners have been chasing a deal for Mudryk for weeks and even months now but are on the verge of missing out.
Chelsea have agreed to pay €100million (£89million) for Mudryk and he will be at Stamford Bridge later today to watch the Blues against Crystal Palace.
The chase of Mudryk is pretty much over and the Gunners may now need to move on to other targets like Raphinha.
ARSENAL WANTED RAPHINHA OVER THE SUMMER
It felt like only a matter of time until Raphinha was going to be linked with Arsenal again.
Edu wanted to sign Raphinha from Leeds United and the Whites did think that the battle for his signature would come down to Tottenham or Arsenal.
Barcelona won the race though, even with Mundo Deportivo in Catalunya reporting that Arsenal were willing to pay £63million for the Brazilian.
Fabrizio Romano even suggested that Raphinha was an ‘obsession’ for Arsenal because Edu wanted him so much and that missing out on him was the ‘biggest regret’ of the summer window for the Gunners.
Raphinha had his heart set on Barcelona, so maybe there wasn’t much more Arsenal could have done, but the move to Spain hasn’t quite gone to plan just yet.
The Brazilian has started just seven league games for Barcelona, notching two goals and two assists.
A move back to the Premier League may appeal to Raphinha and the Gunners would surely love to finally sign him.
Hailed as a ‘special player’ by Leeds director of football Victor Orta, Raphinha isn’t exactly in the same mould as Mudryk but another winger – on either flank – appears to be the focus for Arsenal this month.
