Chelsea risk creating ‘next De Bruyne or Salah’ as January exit mooted for ‘phenomenal’ star

Chelsea risk Mykhaylo Mudryk “being another Mohamed Salah or Kevin De Bruyne” if they allow him to leave the club, according to Pat Nevin.

Mudryk has struggled at Stamford Bridge since his big-money move from Shakhtar Donetsk in January, and a report has suggested Chelsea would be open to his loan exit in January, or even a permanent sale if a suitable offer arrived.

But the Ukraine international has started to show improvement in recent weeks – perhaps due to crossbar challenge bouts with his manager – and ex-Chelsea winger Nevin has urged his former club to “look at the underlying player” and not allow him to leave and become a world class footballer elsewhere.

Nevin told OLBG: “Mykhaylo Mudryk is phenomenal and will come good – Chelsea cannot risk him being another Salah or De Bruyne There’s a reason why Arsenal wanted Mudryk – he’s phenomenal. His pace is ridiculous and so are his skills.

“He had different problems to everyone else as he was a Ukrainian lad coming into a new country. There was also a massive transfer fee hanging over him, though the pressure is slightly off now due to the other fees Chelsea have paid.

“I think he has the potential to be a great forward and a great creator. He came into a side that wasn’t playing well, but he didn’t make it easy for himself. His numbers last season were not good.

“I always look at the underlying player and I don’t think Chelsea want to lose him. Chelsea know better than anyone that if you let a player go, they can be world-class somewhere else.

“He came in in January, which is a tough time for players to arrive. It’s early days this season, and I still have great hopes for Mudryk when the team starts clicking. That could be later this season or next season. He has all the qualities that defenders hate playing against.

“If Chelsea did cut their losses, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him shine somewhere else. He’s still only 22. You’d expect him, and a lot of other Chelsea players, to start finding their best form.

“The problem is, you have so many players who aren’t at their peak yet, and that’s why you need experienced players like Thiago Silva or Ben Chilwell to help the team gel. It’s just not clicking as well as everybody at the club would have hoped.”

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