Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca says he and the club have full confidence in Michail Mundrick after he was found to have broken doping rules.
The 23-year-old has returned a failed drugs test – which is routinely carried out by the FA – and has been suspended by the club.
An investigation is to be conducted to determine the source of Mudryk’s negative result.
The player himself says he has never knowingly taken performance-enhancing drugs.
Speaking on the matter, Maresca said: “We trust Mykhailo and we support Mykhailo and trust means we believe Mykhailo, we trust Mykhailo and we support him.
“What Mykhailo said and what we said is that we trust him and we support him.
🚨🔵 Maresca: “We all support Misha Mudryk”.
“The situation is a little clearer. We have a statement from the club, which has already said what we need to say.”
“So there is nothing to add. All the players in training support and trust Misa.” pic.twitter.com/mCj36I0r81
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 18, 2024
“First of all, things like this don’t just happen to young players but to experienced players.
“It’s been my duty since we started to try to have a very close relationship with players because that’s how I like it.
“With Mudryk it’s exactly the same and I’m here to help him with anything he needs. At the moment it is normal that he will need help from the club, from me and from his team-mates and we are all there trying to support him.”
An innocent man
Mudryk has not seen many minutes in the Premier League this season but has been used in cup competitions.
He would likely have started Chelsea’s Europa Conference League match against Shamrock Rovers on Thursday.
Asked if he believes Mudryk is innocent, he added: “We all believe that, then we’ll see.
“I think he’ll be back. The only thing is we don’t know when, that’s the only doubt we have right now. Will definitely be back.
“It’s not about Mykhailo, it’s about any player in the world that if something like this happens, they need support.
“We support and trust Misha (Mudryk)”
Enzo Maresca on the suspension of Mykhailo Mudryk after an adverse finding in a routine urine test. pic.twitter.com/KtMfA8CA2s
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) December 18, 2024
“Whether they are 20 or 30 or English or Italian or Ukrainian – when things like this happen, I need support, you need support, they need support – we all need support.
“It is not about Mihailo, his age or his country. When things like this happen, we all need support.
“He was improving a lot, especially in the last game. He is beginning to understand where he should stay.
“In the beginning because of his ability he was moving and running a lot, but in the last two or three games he has improved a lot and we were very happy with him. In terms of where he might be in one, two or three years. I don’t know.
“The talent we see on the training pitch is exactly the same as what you sometimes see during the game. With Mykhailo it’s exactly the same feeling. In training it’s exactly the same as in the game.”
