Former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard gave a brutal assessment on Chelsea star Mykhailo Mudryk after his performance for Ukraine against England in European Championship qualifiers on Sunday afternoon. The winger is yet to pick up any momentum since joining the Blues for £88.5million in the January transfer window.
The saga was an extraordinary one after Mudryk dropped hints on a switch to Arsenal for months, only to join the Blues from Shakhtar Donetsk instead. After a period without playing, the Ukraine international was put straight into action in some difficult circumstances to regain fitness.
The 22-year-old has since worked his way back into the side and grabbed his first goal contribution with an assist for Mateo Kovacic against Leicester. It was a much-needed return for a player that has plenty of potential, but who still has to win some over while he is given time to grow.
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"Every player wants to play and it’s important that players play to improve, I think that’s a fact," Graham Potter told a press conference on Mudryk's struggles. "But at the same time, it’s not a straight road, it’s not just a play and everything happens in a linear way. Sometimes you have to take a step away.
"Sometimes you just need a bit of training time, you need a breather. Lots of factors. Hopefully, he can benefit from the time he’s had. It’s not easy for him to just arrive in the middle of pre-season for him and to come into a new country, new club, new league, and just hit his absolute maximum level."
There would have been hopes that some familiarity with the Ukraine national team would spark some of the form that earned him such a transfer, however he was substituted in a clash with England after an hour. Former midfielder Gerrard had his say on Mudryk's role for the second England goal in his nation's 2-0 defeat.
He told Channel 4: "From a Ukraine point of view, it’s fantastic play from England as they open the pitch up, but you would be really disappointed if you’re the coach with Mudryk. With all due respect he is still learning the game but you know that you need to keep Saka on his right foot, you can’t allow him to come in on that left foot because it’s a wand and he gets it right on the money."
It's the kind of mistake that may be brutal for a player still learning his trade, however that can be the key difference when playing at the top level and there's still some way before he can reach that with the Blues.
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