Andriy Shevchenko, a former Chelsea striker, has urged the Premier League club to be patient with Mykhailo Mudryk and wait to see how he performs in the long run.
Mykhailo Mudryk joined Chelsea from Shakhtar Donetsk in January for a fee of £89 million. The 22-year-old Ukrainian winger has one assist but no goals in six Premier League appearances so far.
Mudryk didn’t play any competitive football before joining Chelsea because the Ukrainian football season was disrupted by the ongoing conflict with Russia and the domestic league’s winter break.
Mudryk was expected to hit the ground running almost immediately after signing an eight-and-a-half-year contract with Chelsea, but that was not the case. Graham Potter’s tutelage has been difficult for him.
Despite this, Mudryk will play for Ukraine in their Euro 2024 qualifier against England on Sunday.
Andriy Shevchenko, the former head coach of Ukraine’s national team, stated ahead of the game that Mudryk’s decision to join Chelsea was beneficial to the youngster’s career.
Chelsea has bought a talented player when he is very young, for the future,” Shevchenko said.
He’s just starting his path in a massive football career.
His first step has been the right step, coming to Chelsea. He’s part of an ambitious project. He’s in good hands.
The decision to get him right now was down to how much the club believed in his talent. He’s on a very long contract, that’s very unusual. Chelsea is investing in their future.
He added;
The Premier League usually demands results right now, but let’s see how he does in these eight years. Let’s see what he can do in the long term. The club must be patient with him, believe in his talent.
WITHIN NIGERIA recalls that Chelsea broke their transfer record when they paid about £30 million to acquire Shevchenko from AC Milan in 2006. He scored 22 goals and helped the club win the 2007 League Cup in his two seasons there.
I wish I had come to Chelsea at his [Mudryk’s] age, Shevchenko added.
What worked for me in Milan and London was immersing myself in the culture, studying the language so I can communicate with my teammates. That will help him acclimatize quicker which is important when you move to any country in the world.