Mykhaylo Mudryk was caught liking an Instagram post which criticised Chelsea team-mate Marc Cucurella after their frustrating 1-1 draw with West Ham.
The Ukrainian wonderkid, who joined the Blues in January for a stunning £87million transfer fee, looked furious with Cucurella for not passing him the ball during Saturday's match. As Mudryk, playing in front of the Spaniard on the left-hand side, made a dart forward, Cucurella elected to pass square to Enzo Fernandez instead - before awkwardly apologising to the Ukraine international.
His conservative decision drew groans from the Chelsea fans and dismay from Mudryk, who appears to have made his feelings clear on social media. The former Shakhtar Donetsk starlet's Instagram account was seen liking a post which ridiculed Cucurella's passing, as a fan-made meme showed the 24-year-old defender ignoring Mudryk in favour of other Blues team-mates.
Mudryk's account then removed the like, hoping to avoid scrutiny. Supporters picked up on his move, though, sparking speculation of a rift between the talented attacker and Cucurella, who's failed to live up to expectations at Stamford Bridge following his £63m transfer from Brighton over the summer.
Another January arrival in Joao Felix also took aim at the under-fire left-back during Saturday's game, crying out for more width on the ball. Cucurella was subbed off for Ben Chilwell in the 67th minute, prompting ironic cheers from the travelling Chelsea fans.
Addressing the Spaniard's poor form after the match, which the Blues led early on through Felix, before West Ham soon equalised with a goal from ex-Chelsea player Emerson Palmeiri, manager Graham Potter admitted that Cucurella can do much better.
"Supporters are entitled to their opinion of course, they just want the team to do well and as I said in the previous press conference I don't think Marc is in his absolute best moment," Potter, who notably signed the Barcelona academy graduate while he was in charge of Brighton, confessed.
"But at the same time he's been part of a team that's kept a clean sheet at Anfield, a clean sheet against Fulham. In the summer, I know because I was at the selling club, there was another club that were interested in Marc.
"From a points view in the Premier League they are a good club, so Marc hasn't become a bad player at all but some players can go through bad times so we need to stick together and help him. Supporters are entitled to their opinion there's nothing for me to be critical of. That's just what we have to work with."
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Manchester City are believed to be the other club who were interested in Cucurella during the summer transfer window but the reigning champions were priced out by Todd Boehly 's money-splashing Blues. He's currently in his second season as a Premier League player, after Brighton signed him from Getafe in August 2021 for a bargain £15m.
Chelsea great Frank Leboeuf recently claimed that Cucurella "doesn't belong" in Potter's side. "We don't want to see him anymore," Leboeuf affirmed to ESPN. "With all due respect to a man that I don't know, the player is not good enough for Chelsea. It's as simple as that, you know. It's crazy that they signed him for £60m or £70m, but we can see that he doesn't belong to that level."
