The Gunners were confident heading into the weekend of finally wrapping up a deal for the 22-year-old, having told the Ukrainian giants they would pay £60m up front for the winger.
However, Chelsea quickly launched an attempt to hijack the deal on Saturday, flying a contingency out to Shakhtar’s training camp to successfully snare one of Europe’s most sought-after talents.
Chelsea will pay £62m up front and a further £27m in add-ons.
The player had preferred a move to Arsenal up until today but has now agreed to move to Stamford Bridge. He is now expected to fly to London to complete a medical.
It is a hammer blow for Gunners manager Mikel Arteta and sporting director Edu, who are now back to the drawing board after spending three weeks tracking Mudryk.
