A compliment to a Ukrainian from a former mentor
Brighton head coach Roberto De Zerbi commented on the difficulties of adapting his former ward to To the minerwinger Chelsea by Mikhail Mudrik.
“I think it was difficult for him to change the country, change the level of difficulty of the league. The competition within the Chelsea squad is higher than in Shakhtar. But he is a smart guy, he loves football, and I think that the management of the club and Pochettino did the right thing, because now he is playing very well and is a great, great talent,” the Italian emphasized.
Let us remember that De Zerbi worked with Mudryk when he was Shakhtar’s coach in the 2021/22 season.
Mikhail moved to Chelsea in January 2023 for a record sum for Shakhtar of 70 million euros. The Ukrainian had a hard time adapting to the new club: it took him almost nine months to score his first goal.
This season, Mudryk played 40 matches in different tournaments, scored seven goals and provided two assists. In the Blues’ last match against Nottingham (3:2), Mikhail opened the scoring, scoring for the first time in two months.
Chelsea are in seventh place in the Premier League, behind Newcastle on goal difference. Tomorrow, May 15, the Blues will play Brighton away, and end the season next Sunday with a home match against Bournemouth.
Source: Sportarena

I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.