Mykhailo Mudryk hasn’t played for around two years and, due to his suspension after failing a doping test, he’ll only be able to return in 2028. I’m not going into the doping issue itself, but rather the pressure he faced and whether it was fair, or just another mistake in a football world that imposes absurd levels of expectation on young talents.
Mudryk was a global sensation at Shakhtar Donetsk and ended up joining Chelsea for around €70 million, with several performance-related bonuses. And here comes the first problem: Chelsea. The way the club has been spending millions on young players, almost like it’s Football Manager, completely inflates the market. Being direct, no matter how good Mudryk looked in the Ukrainian league, that kind of fee was never justified.
It’s exactly because of these inflated prices and the uncertainty around them that the trend of valuing “Premier League proven” players has grown so much. Players already tested in England carry a kind of built-in trust, even creating a sense of superiority over other leagues.
The hype around Mudryk was completely over the top. Pressure on young prospects is normal, but this went too far, largely because of the transfer fee. He had pace, unpredictability in his dribbling, was difficult to read, but then you had statements from the club placing him just behind Vinícius Júnior and Mbappé among the best wingers in the world, or even De Zerbi saying it would be a personal failure if he didn’t take him to the top. There’s no way not to see the exaggeration, even if the talent was there.
Right now, Mudryk is 25, hasn’t played since he was 23 and will only return at 27. In practical terms, since arriving at Chelsea in January 2023, he’s had almost no real impact. It’s now 2026 and, to make it worse, he’s under contract until 2031, which only reinforces the poor planning already mentioned.
So the question remains: is this one of the worst signings in Premier League history? Considering the context, the fee and what he’s (not) delivered, it clearly belongs in that conversation. At this moment, he’s a player on the sidelines, training with amateur clubs, which is simply sad to see.
Conclusion
Mudryk is a global flop and there are multiple reasons for that. The doping issue is just the tip of the iceberg.
It also highlights yet another mistake, among many, from this Chelsea, a club that often seems to treat real football like it’s a game.