Chelsea new signing Mykhailo Mudryk was handed a home debut on Friday night against west London rivals Fulham at Stamford Bridge. The former Shakhter Donesk winger made the switch to Stamford Bridge in January, signing for a fee that could rise to as much as £88.5million.
The Blues were fast actors in the deal, hijacking the 22-year-old from Arsenal in a sensational swoop to add a much needed quality to the West Londoners attack.
Mudryk was handed his first minutes from the bench away at Liverpool in a 0-0 draw, but looked particularly bright in those few touches he was afforded. A week off followed as the side weren’t in FA Cup action, meaning more preparation was put in before making his full debut against Fulham.
While there were some sparks of his pace and ability, he failed to capture the headlines and was hooked off at half-time as Noni Madueke made his debut from the bench after joining form PSV Eindhoven in January. There were questions over whether there was an injury concern for the forward, with Gary Neville saying on Sky Sports: “I didn’t think he would but he has [subbed Mudryk off], it’s a brave one. Certainly does not help the confidence of a new signing,” before questioning if he was injured.
It doesn’t seem as though injury was the issue for Mudryk though as Potter confirmed that it was an illness that was the problem for the winger. He told BeinSports: “Mudryk had a cold.” despite deciding to start the player in the clash from the start.
It remains to be seen whether the forward will be involved against West Ham next week, with the youngster having a lack of minutes under his belt on top of his illness.