Back in January 2023, little-known forward Mykhailo Mudryk made the headlines when he joined Chelsea in a £62 million move from Shakhtar Donetsk; a fee that could eventually reach £89 million with add-ons and bonuses.
The size of the fee wasn’t particularly helpful for a young man, then aged just 22, to adapt to a move to a new country and culture in a league in which instant success is demanded.
Mudryk has only started 53 Premier League games for the Blues in the two-and-a-half seasons that have followed, scoring five goals.
But then a doping ban, initially instigated in December 2024, saw Mudryk have the number ten shirt taken from him and handed to Cole Palmer. He has since been formally charged with violating anti-doping rules, and could now be suspended until 2029.
So what does the future hold for Mykhailo Mudryk… and will we ever see him play for Chelsea ever again?
Poster Child
Mudryk was one of a battalion of young players signed by Chelsea during 2023, becoming the face of what many critics saw as a bid by Todd Boehly to hoard as many youthful talents as possible.
The Ukrainian was also used by many in the media as the poster child – and not in a good way – of Chelsea’s amortisation transfer loophole, which saw the cost of the player’s transfer fee spread across the length of their contract.
Mudryk signed an eight-and-a-half-year deal at Stamford Bridge; lightening the load of his fee while securing one of the longest contracts in Premier League history.
It placed a bizarre burden on the shoulders of a young man already battling the level of expectation that came with the tag of the most expensive Ukrainian player in history – ahead of his legendary countryman, Andriy Shevchenko.
In and out of the side, Mudryk never truly got a decent run in the first team; only occasionally showcasing his talents, with that phenomenal strike against Arsenal in October 2023 perhaps his finest moment in a blue shirt.
Glimpses of quality would remain fleeting, however, as he once again struggled to establish himself in the Chelsea first team in 2024/25 as a number of new signings were instead given prominence.
And then, in December 2024, came the biggest bombshell of them all: Mudryk tested positive for a doping substance, meldonium.
Not So Dope
The winger was provisionally suspended from all football activity by the Football Association until a ‘B’ sample had been tested – hence why he wasn’t seen on the pitch in the first half of 2025.
Mudryk was forced to sit at home while his teammates played on without him – a devastating blow for the 24-year-old.
Worse was to come. In June 2025, Mudryk was formally charged with doping offences, with his ‘B’ urine sample also showing traces of the performance enhancing stimulant, meldonium.
The player has protested his innocence throughout.
“This has come as a complete shock as I have never knowingly used any banned substances or broken any rules, and am working closely with my team to investigate how this could have happened,” he wrote on his Instagram feed.
The rules of his suspension mean that Mudryk is unable to even train with Chelsea, with his last game for the club coming back in November 2024.
In these cases, players have two choices: accept the charges and any punishment that comes their way, or proceed to a hearing, where they get to air their story.
It seems likely that Mudryk will choose to go to a hearing, which will extend his absence from the Chelsea squad yet further. He could yet be banned for up to four years, too.
To the Future
Mudryk has brought on board Morgan Sports Law as his legal defender. They helped Paul Pogba to get his doping ban reduced from four years to 18 months, and enjoyed similar successes with the likes of Tyson Fury and Chris Froome in their respective cases.
The player has reiterated that he never knowingly ingested any banned substances, with media reports suggesting that the Ukrainian passed a lie detector test that confirmed as much.
According to the BBC, Mudryk came into contact with the meldonium – a substance used to enhance the lung capacity and oxygen retention of those suffering from respiratory diseases – while on duty with the Ukrainian national team.
The crux of the hearing, which is likely to be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), will be in determining whether Mudryk had any true knowledge of what he was taking.
That will determine the length of any ban. Given that he’s already served a year, Mudryk could – in theory – return to the Chelsea squad in 2026. But, if he’s found to have knowingly taken a performance enhancing drug, then it could be 2028 before the Ukrainian pulls on the blue shirt again.
Reports confirm that Mudryk is still training every day with a private fitness coach and, despite being banned from driving for a series of speeding offences, he is said to be in good spirits.
But will Chelsea fans ever get to see Mudryk live up to his potential at Stamford Bridge?