One of Chelsea’s most expensive signings has been labelled a ‘disaster’ – and in another world he could have joined Arsenal.
Chelsea saw off fierce competition from London rivals Arsenal when they signed Mykhailo Mudryk from Shakhtar Donetsk in 2023.
Mudryk only made 44 appearances for the Ukrainian side but impressed enough to earn a £62m move to Stamford Bridge, plus a further £27m in bonuses.
A 22-year-old Mudryk signed a staggering eight-and-a-half year contract at Chelsea but time is already running out for the winger to save his Premier League career.
Mudryk earned rave reviews for his bright cameo against Liverpool on his Chelsea debut, with Rio Ferdinand saying at the time that Arsenal could live to regret not bringing him to the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners were confident of signing Mudryk in the summer of 2023, particularly after the Ukraine international hinted he was keen on the move in a series of cryptic social media posts.
But Chelsea hijacked the move and agreed a late deal with Shakhtar Donetsk, with Mudryk reportedly left ‘devastated’ that a dream move to Arsenal fell through.
Much was expected from one of the most expensive signings in Premier League history but Mudryk has flopped at Chelsea, scoring just ten goals over the past three seasons.
Mudryk has not even featured for the Blues since the end of November as he was provisionally suspended by the FA after testing positive for a banned substance.
Ex-Premier League winger Gabriel Agbonlahor has labelled Mudryk a ‘disaster of a signing’ but says the Ukrainian is just one of several big-money flops at Stamford Bridge.
‘Look at some players they paid big money for and they’re just not performing,’ Agbonlahor told talkSPORT.
‘Neto didn’t try to take his man on against Brighton. He came in for big-money. Madueke can be good one week, poor the next. Fernandez getting bullied in midfield.
‘There’s a lack of leadership and a lack of quality as well to be honest. It’s scary what they’ve spent and wasted.
‘Badiashile was £35m, we’ve not seen him play. Mudryk was a disaster of a signing. Enzo, Neto and Nkunku were all expensive. They spent £45m on Felix and then send him out on loan.
‘Look at the amount of money they’ve wasted.’
Agbonlahor’s criticism comes amid Chelsea’s worrying slump, which has seen Enzo Maresca’s side slip from second to sixth in the Premier League in the space of two months.
The Blues had the chance to go top in mid-December but now face a fight just to qualify for the Champions League.
Chelsea’s latest defeat came at the hands of Brighton, who actually beat the west London outfit twice in the space of six days, and Maresca admitted the second was ‘probably’ their worst performance since he took over last summer.
‘Probably since I arrived that is the worst performance, especially in the moment we are in,’ Maresca said.
‘We are fourth in the league and winning tonight you can go one point from third and make the gap to the rest bigger and the performance is not one you want to offer so we are very upset and sorry for the fans that were here.
‘This is the worst moment since I arrived but we are still there and we need to finish in the best way.’