Chelsea will take Mykhailo Mudryk on their pre-season tour to Hong Kong, and that matters. It matters because after one year and eight months out of the game, the winger is back in the squad picture. It also matters because nobody at the club truly knows yet what shape his comeback will take.
Xabi Alonso made that clear after Chelsea’s 2-1 friendly defeat to 10-man Tottenham in Sydney. The message was simple. Mudryk is returning, everyone is pleased for him, but any rush to draw conclusions would be foolish. Football does not work like that, especially after a lay-off this long.
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Mudryk, now 25, has not played since November 2024 after being provisionally suspended following an adverse finding for meldonium. The Football Association has now closed its anti-doping case after he accepted breaching the rules and agreed to a ban matching the period already served.
That resolves the legal and regulatory part of it. The football part is much more complicated.
Mudryk return leaves Chelsea with questions
Alonso said, “Yes, he is coming to Hong Kong, but I haven’t spoken to him yet.” That tells you where things stand. There is no neat reintegration plan ready to go, no certainty over fitness, and no guarantee over minutes.
The Chelsea manager added: “It’s too early to tell how he is in terms of fitness, in terms of the game time you need to be involved again, so it’s still too early to tell.” That is the sensible line. A player can train privately, stay lean, and work every day, but football sharpness is another matter. Rhythm, timing, decision-making under pressure, those only come back through proper team work and matches.
Mudryk has been training away from Chelsea’s Cobham base, unable to work with club staff. Instead, he organised his own programme, using private coaches and facilities at Uxbridge. That shows commitment, but it does not replicate elite-level competition.
Alonso also said, “We expect that it will take time.” Again, no…
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