Deal for Ukrainian winger has £75m purchase option
‘I’m so excited to be reunited with De Zerbi’
Tottenham have thrown a Premier League lifeline to the forgotten Chelsea winger, Mykhailo Mudryk, signing him on loan just before the transfer deadline and challenging him to revive his career.
Mudryk became a €100m player when Chelsea took him from Shakhtar Donetsk in January 2023; the deal compromised an initial €70m and €30m in add-ons. Chelsea beat Arsenal to his signature at a point when the Ukrainian was among the most in-demand players in Europe.
The move to Chelsea did not work out and Mudryk hit rock bottom when he was banned for returning an adverse reading for the banned substance, meldonium, which can increase respiratory capacity and stamina. His last competitive game for Chelsea was on 28 November 2024.
Mudryk was initially suspended before being given a four-year ban by the Football Association. But after an appeal to the court of arbitration for sport, he was able to resolve his case with the FA at the end of July, being cleared for an immediate return to playing. He accepted breaking anti-doping rules and agreed to a suspension that was equal to the time he had already served. The FA noted that changes have been made to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s rules on meldonium and had Mudryk’s test been conducted today then “the concentration of meldonium in the sample would not have been reported” and no adverse finding would have been recorded.
Spurs have taken a punt on Mudryk on the recommendation of their manager, Roberto Di Zerbi, who worked productively with the 25-year-old at Shakhtar, overseeing his breakthrough season in 2021-22. De Zerbi was in the market for a left-winger to complete a new-look front line with the right-sided attacker, Savio and the central striker Omar Marmoush; both have joined from Manchester City.
Spurs failed with moves for Cody Gakpo and Iliman Ndiaye. The former was retained by Liverpool; the latter went from Everton to City. And so De Zerbi, who has started the season with Mathys Tel on the left, pivoted to Mudryk. The deal for him has a £75m purchase option.
“It’s a great feeling. I can’t wait to start training and playing for the club, and I’m so excited to be reunited with Roberto De Zerbi,” said Mudryk. “I’m a player who brings speed and creativity, and I want to help in both the offensive and defensive areas. I want to make the fans excited.”
Speaking during Spurs’s pre-season tour of Australia when Mudryk’s ban ended, De Zerbi said: “He’s my son. I’m very happy. He deserves to play. He’s a cool guy, a top player. Hopefully he can show what he suffered in the last two years in this next season.”
Spurs have not done business with Chelsea since 2009 when the goalkeeper, Carlo Cudicini, was allowed to join them from Stamford Bridge on a free transfer.
