Shakhtar Donetsk chief Sergei Palkin has taken aim at Arsenal after selling Mykhaylo Mudryk to rivals Chelsea.

Mudryk, who was paraded to fans at half-time of Sunday's win over Crystal Palace, has signed a mammoth eight-and-a-half year contract.

Shakhtar chief Palkin has spilled the beans on how the deal happened - and why he was not happy at the way Arsenal went about the deal.

Asked why pundits saw the Gunners as favourites for Mudryk, he told the Athletic: "It is because Arsenal contacted the player almost one and a half months before they contacted us.

"Can you imagine, for example, to have Mikel Arteta, Oleksandr Zinchenko and the sporting director (Edu) calling you, to have Arsenal calling you almost every day, every two days, every three days?

"Therefore, why did many people around it have the impression that Mudryk was going to Arsenal? It is because Arsenal contacted him and then Mudryk started to watch some games of Arsenal. But negotiations are negotiations."