Sports
GRAHAM Potter says Chelsea’s new £88 million ($108 million) winger Mykhailo Mudryk is set to make his debut in Saturday’s clash with Liverpool.
Chelsea boss Potter landed Mudryk from Shakhtar Donetsk on Sunday after Premier League leaders Arsenal appeared on the verge of signing him.
The 22-year-old was paraded in front of Chelsea fans on the pitch at half-time of Sunday’s 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.
Mudryk has trained with his new team-mates this week and Potter is likely to use him at some stage at Anfield this weekend.
“Yeah, there’s a chance (he will feature). “It’s how much he can do. I think 90 minutes, no. There’s probably a role for him at some stage in the game,” Potter told reporters on Friday.
“He’s obviously come from a mid-season break, so hasn’t played so much football recently but has been training well. We’ll assess him and see how much he can play at the weekend.”
With Chelsea struggling in 10th place in the Premier League, Potter hopes the skillful Mudryk can prove the spark to ignite his team.
“He’s a young player, exciting player, fantastic speed one v one, can attack the backline and now we’ve just got to help him adapt to the Premier League, adapt to us,” he said.
Mudryk might not be the last signing of a busy January window for Potter, who has already brought in Joao Felix, Benoit Badiashile, David Datro Fofana and Andrey Santos.
Chelsea have been linked with PSV Eindhoven’s England Under-21 winger Noni Madueke, who has reportedly had a medical ahead of a transfer worth around £35 million.
Asked what he could reveal about Chelsea’s interest in the former Crystal Palace and Tottenham youth player, Potter replied: “Nothing really.
“I know there is a lot of noise around there but at the moment nothing to announce, the club hasn’t announced anything and I’m not in the position to speak any more.
“Until he’s a Chelsea player, nothing further to say. I don’t like to talk about players who aren’t Chelsea players.”
Chelsea’s win against Palace last weekend was only their second in 10 league games, while Liverpool have endured their own problems of late.
Jurgen Klopp’s are only one place above the Blues, but Potter is certain the German remains the right man to lead Liverpool.
“It amazes me how people talk about the Premier League being the best league in the world and then I’m asked about whether it’s surprising if people struggle in it,” he said.
“Jurgen’s a fantastic guy, a fantastic manager. They will fix it, they will come through the struggles and then we all know their quality.”
-AFP/Channels
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Tags: Chelsea Graham Potter Joao Felix Mykhailo Mudryk
