Mudryk ‘confidence’ blighted by Pochettino in Chelsea press conference, says Petit
Mykhaylo Mudryk will not benefit from being singled out by Mauricio Pochettino, says Emmanuel Petit, after the Chelsea boss said the winger “needs to understand the game better”.
Mudryk was handed a start in the 0-0 draw with Bournemouth on Sunday but was largely ineffective, as he has been throughout his Chelsea career thus far.
After the game, Pochettino said the Ukraine international “still needs to learn in the Premier League”.
The Argentinian boss added: “It’s very fast. He needs to understand the game better, try to be more connected with the team. We need to give the time and tools for him to improve during the season.”
Petit doesn’t think it was wise to single Mudryk out given his fragile confidence.
“Mudryk isn’t the only one struggling in that team so pointing at him in the press will not help him at all because he’s not playing with confidence,” Petit told Betway.
“He will be thinking, ‘Why is my manager saying I don’t understand the way I should be playing in the Premier League?’
“This is a bad sign for Mudryk and I’m pretty sure he will be on the bench next time against Aston Villa.
“Next time Pochettino says something like that he should look at other players too because the Bournemouth game was not Mudryk’s fault.
“Chelsea could have played for a week and wouldn’t have scored, there is no connection between the players because they are not speaking the same language. I was bored watching the game.”
Petit explained why Chelsea are yet to see the best of Mudryk.
He added: “You can see with foreign players in the Premier League that they can struggle, not many thrive straight away.
“The physical demands including speed is huge, you only have one or two seconds to think before you receive the ball. It’s a paradox because Mudryk’s qualities include speed and power with the ball, but he’s struggling.
“Mudryk is always playing with his back to goal, he should be running at them instead just like Jeremy Doku did for Manchester City against West Ham. He received the ball, turned and ran at his opponents – and he scored! Mudryk doesn’t do that despite his speed.”
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