Rio Ferdinand confesses he misjudged Mykhailo Mudryk as the Chelsea star set a Premier League record.
Mykhailo Mudryk proved his critics wrong on his Chelsea debut with a record-breaking performance against Liverpool at Anfield.
Rio Ferdinand has revealed that Mykhailo Mudryk, a new Chelsea player, proved him wrong barely minutes into his Premier League debut. At the start of the month, the 22-year-old winger was highly connected with a move to Arsenal, only for the Blues to step in and hijack a deal.
Mudryk came on as a substitute in the second half of West Ham’s goalless draw with Liverpool at Anfield. Despite not having played in a meaningful match for Shakhtar Donetsk since November, the Ukraine international seemed the brightest player on the field.
- Mykhailo Mudryk Sends a Clear Message to Mauricio Pochettino Ahead of Chelsea’s Clash with Bournemouth
- Erik ten Hag’s Controversial Response Regarding Manchester United and Brighton’s Transfer Spending
- Mikel Arteta praised Gabriel Jesus, whom he claimed “changed the world for Arsenal last season”
- Four Arsenal Players Face Make-or-Break Period With Three Months to Salvage Their Careers or Face Uncertain Futures
- Former Chelsea Player Claims He Wasn’t Utilized Properly and Now Thrives as a Key Player for a Prominent European Club
He injected intensity to Graham Potter’s side and proved to be a constant threat, forcing Jurgen Klopp to replace the yellow-carded James Milner for Trent Alexander-Arnold. Speaking on the YouTube channel FIVE, Ferdinand confessed to changing his opinion on Mudryk amid doubts that he’d fulfil his eye-watering price tag.
“I’ve got to say, his first touch he kicked it out of play, by the way,” the former Manchester United defender said. “Everyone in the studio looked at each other and said ‘£80m what? How much?’
“And his second touch, Milner got booked trying to bring him down because he knew he was going to be off. The jets were on. He is rapid! The kid isn’t even in rhythm, he’s not played any games in the last six weeks. Imagine when he’s fully fit.”
And, it turns out that Mudryk wasn’t just ‘rapid’, he was record-breaking rapid. Despite only 35 minutes or so in the English top-flight, the winger recorded the fastest speed of any player in the league this term (36.63 km/h).
- When does the summer transfer period begin and end? Arsenal, Chelsea, and Tottenham have important dates.
- Premier League Fixture Rules Unveiled: Arsenal, Chelsea, and Tottenham Add ‘Complexity’ to the Mix
- 2023 Ballon d’Or favourites ranked including Messi, Haaland & Mbappe
- Premier League 2023-24 Fixture Release Date and Season Kick-Off Revealed
- Top Tacklers of Europe’s Elite: Ranking the Players with the Most Tackles in the 2022/2023 Season across Europe’s Top 5 Leagues
Only Anthony Gordon, Darwin Nunes, Erling Haaland, and new teammate Denis Zakaria have come close to matching Mudryk’s top speed, but the Ukrainian shows no signs of slowing down, working extra hard in the gym.
Dima Chapovskyi, his performance coach, posted the video to Instagram with an intriguing caption: “37.00. It’s not a matter of temperature. It’s Mudryk vs Liverpool.”
With Chelsea already out of the FA Cup, Potter now has till the beginning of next month to work with MudryThe Blues will face Fulham at Stamford Bridge on February 3. Chelsea lost the rematch last month despite dominating the first half at Craven Cottage, with Joao Felix sent off on his debut after impressing in the opening half.k and other new acquisition Noni Mudueke at Cobham. The break and extra time on the training field will allow Chelsea’s manager to put his ideas into action.
