30 March 2023 , 23:53
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Mykhaylo Mudryk believes those who claim he is a "loser" will one day turnaround and call him a "winner" as he remained defiant despite his challenging start to life at Chelsea.
The Blues signed the Ukrainian in January, pipping Arsenal to his signature, as they paid a mammoth £89m to prize him away from Shakhtar Donetsk. Mudryk put in an impressive substitute cameo on his debut against Liverpool at Anfield, but has struggled to live up to the hype since.
He is yet to score for the west London outfit, who themselves have struggled for goals since the turn of the year. Mudryk's price tag was always going to bring with it huge expectation and the player concedes it has added pressure, but he's confident the tide will turn in his favour.
He was quizzed on his tough start to life at Stamford Bridge and told : “I can say yes, it's a lot of pressure, but it's not for the first time. I like this pressure because one day that guy who said I’m a loser, one day he will say I’m a winner. Time will tell.”
Mudryk made his name in his homeland as a winger, scoring ten times in 18 games for Shakhtar this season before heading to the Premier League. Graham Potter has utilised him as a central striker however, such are his lack of options in that area. The Ukraine international is open to the positional switch however, claiming it can be to his and the team's benefit.
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He added: “It's a good position. It's easier when the ball comes to you by floor but it's heavier when you receive the ball in the air. But it depends what kind of game we got here, for some games maybe it's better for me to play nine, for some games it will be better for me, and for the team, to play on the side.”
Mykhaylo Mudryk has struggled at Chelsea so far (Getty Images)Despite that the forward has found himself left out of the team in recent weeks, but Potter has played down its significance insisting the player needs time to adapt to the demands of the English game. "Of course, every player wants to play and it's important that players play to improve, I think that's a fact," he explained.
"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. Sometimes you need a breather. So there are a lot of factors.
"Hopefully, he can benefit from the time he's had. And again, it's not easy for him to just arrive in the middle of what was pre-season for him and to come into a new country, new club, new league, and just hit his absolute maximum level. It is regardless of the fee; I know people will look at the fee but it doesn’t change the situation he is in. We're positive about him. We're positive about the future for him. But we need just to help them settle and help him understand what he needs to do to help us."