Joe Hart has just recalled what it was like playing against Chelsea’s Mykhailo Mudryk when he was still at Shakhtar Donetsk.
Mykhailo Mudryk has completed his first 18 months as a Chelsea player. It’s fair to say that the £89m signing (BBC) from Shakhtar Donetsk still has a lot to prove, though.
The 23-year-old winger is the definition of raw when you watch him play because his end product is so sporadic.
He scored just seven goals and made four assists in 58 appearances for the Blues to date.
Joe Hart verdict on Chelsea attacker
Joe Hart, who retired from football very recently, came up against Mudryk back in 2022 during the Champions League group stages when Celtic faced Shakhtar Donetsk.
He noticed that the quick left-winger is a big threat and he still pretty optimistic about his future at Stamford Bridge.
When discussing Mudryk on BBC’s coverage of Slovakia vs Ukraine (21 June), Hart said: “There is a huge talent in him. I played against him when he was high on confidence at Shakhtar and they were a pretty average team being honest and we played well against them, but he was such a threat the whole game and smashed two past me over two legs.
“I was really excited when he came to the Premier League, I was like watch this guy. He’s still young and Chelsea is a bit of a difficult club to shine but when they do find their feet, and if he is one of the wingers when they do find their feet, who can shine in that team, I’m excited to see him.”
Mykhailo Mudryk gives trademark performance on Friday
Mudryk started and showed glimpses of quality on Friday afternoon during Ukraine’s 2-1 win over Slovakia at Euro 2024.
The rapid attacker put in the type of performance that Chelsea fans are used to, where there’s a mixture of the good and the bad.
FotMob data provided the statistics from Mudryk’s eye-catching Ukraine display today against Slovakia.
- Match rating – 7.7
- Minutes played – 85
- Successful dribbles – 2/3
- Touches in opposition box – 5
- Chances created – 3
- Accurate crosses – 2/4
- Recoveries – 4
- Successful dribbles – 2/3
If Mudryk can just tighten up his end product with better quality and decisions, the foundations are there for him to become a top player.