"I've Got To Say…" Ferdinand Makes Frank Admission About 88M Chelsea Star After Witnessing His Debut
Content Editor Jan 25th 2023
BT Sport pundit Rio Ferdinand says he did raise an eyebrow after seeing Mykhailo Mudryk's heavy first touch on his Chelsea debut against Liverpool last weekend.
After the inauspicious start, though, the Ukrainian international quickly found his feet and Ferdinand believes the winger could well be something special once he regains match sharpness:
"I've got to say, his first touch he kicked it out of play, by the way. Everyone in the studio looked at each other and said '£80m what? How much?'And his second touch, (James) Milner got booked trying to bring him down because he knew he was going to be off. The jets were on. He is rapid! The kid isn't even in rhythm, he's not played any games in the last six weeks. Imagine when he's fully fit."
Chelsea's decision to pay €100m (£89m) and hijack Arsenal's move for Mudryk means that his performances will be the subject of close scrutiny over the coming weeks.
The 22-year-old will be under pressure to perform and he will know that there are doubters out there looking for signs that the Blues have overpaid to sign him.
Mudryk will, however, be keen to prove the critics wrong and, after impressing Ferdinand on his debut, it seems he is already gaining admirers despite not being fully up to speed yet. He will be hoping to get so more minutes under his belt when Chelsea take on Fulham on Friday week.