'Don't give up on me' - Forgotten Chelsea man Mykhailo Mudryk urges fans to stick with him in hint at potential return from doping suspension

Mudryk's last game for Chelsea was in November 2024 and then the following month, all hell broke loose. The former Shakhtar Donetsk man was charged with a doping offence by the Football Association and while he maintained his innocence, he is facing a four-year ban - with the wide man already spending a year out of the game. 

When his provisional suspension was handed out in late 2024, he took to Instagram to write: "I can confirm that I have been notified that a sample I provided to The FA contained a banned substance. This has come as a complete shock as I have never knowingly used any banned substances or broken any rules, and am working closely with my team to investigate how this could have happened. I know that I have not done anything wrong and remain hopeful that I will be back on the pitch soon. I cannot say any more now due to the confidentiality of the process, but I will as soon as I can."

Mudryk joined Chelsea in January 2023 in a deal worth up to £88 million ($118.5m), and since then, he has scored 10 goals in 73 games. As a result of his ban, reports suggested his former club, Shakhtar, stand to lose £30m ($40m) in add-ons. However, the Ukrainian team's director of football, Darijo Srna, insisted this was not a big issue for them and believes Mudryk has done nothing wrong.

He said last September: "When we speak about Mudryk, we don't think about the money, we speak about the human being. We feel so sorry for him. We know he is 100% innocent - he will show that. We support him like an ex-player, a human being, and a friend. We don't think the money is important."

Since being banned, Mudryk has maintained a low profile, while posting updates on social media every now and again. To mark the start of 2026, the Ukraine international said he could not wait to see his supporters soon, potentially suggesting a positive outcome from this case. He also pleaded with them, saying: "Please don't give up on me".

He said in an Instagram story: "Happy New Year to all my fans. I just wanted to say thank you for your support. I see all your messages and truly appreciate them, so please don't give up on me as I not give up on myself. Can't wait to see you soon."

While Mudryk is seemingly staying positive, many of Chelsea's fans are feeling anything but that right now. The dust is still settling from the sacking of head coach Enzo Maresca following a fallout with the club's hierarchy. While Strasbourg's Liam Rosenior is the favourite to succeed the Italian in the Stamford Bridge dugout, interim manager Calum McFarlane is doing his best to keep a lid on things at the Blues ahead of facing Manchester City at the Etihad on Sunday.

He told reporters in the wake of Maresca's dismissal: "It's been a crazy 24 hours, a whirlwind as you can imagine, but also really enjoyable and exciting. I can only be positive about it. There's a really good culture at the club, in terms of the support from the first team, the directors, everyone seems interested. There's always a bit of an academy presence there [at U21s matches]. In all honesty, it's exactly the same as it always has been. We're all here for the same reason. Training was great today, there was a really good energy. You don't know what to expect, really, but the energy and enthusiasm was exceptional today. They were really focused, driven and hungry. We have a massive game on Sunday. Reece [James] has been brilliant, he has been a real leader in the group and helped the staff and players to get ready for Sunday."