Chelsea's taunting of Arsenal over Mudryk transfer serves as a very modern win

When it comes to Chelsea and the transfer market, there aren't really any surprises anymore.

Everybody knew that they were players in the race for Mykhaylo Mudryk. And when you factor in that the new Blues regime, led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, are prepared to splash serious cash to bankroll a new team, perhaps it shouldn't come as the biggest shock that Chelsea have beaten Arsenal in the race for Shakhtar Donetsk's prized asset.

But the manner in which the Blues have championed Mudryk across their social media channels over the past 12 hours is quite remarkable, and something we've rarely seen before.

After all, the 22-year-old has yet to officially sign on the dotted line. A €100million (£87m) package has been agreed with Shakhtar, but Mudryk's signature isn't on the lucrative seven-year contract that Chelsea have pieced together. Things could still, theoretically, backfire.

That hasn't prevented Chelsea from flaunting their new asset on social media: they've included Mudryk's Instagram handle in the bio of their own official club account and have even shared a highlight reel of the Ukraine international with a link to his Instagram on their Twitter account.

It's bold, to say the least. And it's certainly achieved the feat that the Blues had in mind: rubbing salt into Arsenal fans' wounds.

After all, Mudryk had appeared to be Emirates-bound up until Saturday evening. Even though Chelsea have always been lurking in the background, the Gunners have led the race for the Shakhtar star right from the off and it was believed that the Emirates was Mudryk's favoured destination.

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Even as recently as Friday during Mikel Arteta's press conference, the Spaniard couldn't stifle a wry smile when he was asked if he'd seen the various unsubtle hints Mudryk had been dropping on his own social media channels about a switch to Arsenal.

Arsenal fans are renowned for being the kingpins of social media: whether it's tracking down the location of mooted transfer targets or hijacking Twitter polls.

In some ways, Chelsea have given them a taste of their own medicine with their mischievous messages over the past 24 hours.

Arsenal fans won't be too fussed. After all, they currently hold the bragging rights: they're five points clear at the summit of the Premier League while Chelsea are mired in mid-table mediocrity as Graham Potter tries to find his feet at Stamford Bridge.

When you look beyond the delightful irony of Chelsea's social media activity, the Blues have somehow found a way to harm Arsenal's title tilt. Regrouping and thwarting their London rivals from ending their Premier League odyssey is beyond them considering their position in the league, but pinching the one player the Gunners coveted above all others is a setback that could prove to be a significant turning point in Arsenal's season.

Acquiring a player of Mudryk's calibre should also go some way to solving Chelsea's own problems: the Blues are unlikely to be out of the title picture for long, even if they have encountered painful teething issues in the early stages of the new Boehly-Clearlake era.

For now, they can revel in the fact they've got one over on one of their biggest rivals in the transfer market - even if Arsenal may still have the last laugh this year.