Chelsea winger Mykhailo Mudryk has been charged by the Soccer Affiliation with anti-doping violations.
Mudryk was provisionally suspended by the FA in December 2024 after failing a medication check.
The constructive check was for the prohibited substance meldonium which was administered overseas when Mudryk was not on Chelsea responsibility. Mudryk had performed for Ukraine in Albania and Georgia in November 2024.
An FA spokesperson stated: “We can confirm that Mykhailo Mudryk has been charged with Anti-Doping Rule Violations alleging the presence and/or use of a prohibited substance, in terms of Regulations 3 and 4 of The FA’s Anti-Doping Regulations. As this is an ongoing case, we are not in a position to comment further at this time.”
Mudryk faces a possible ban of as much as 4 years underneath FA guidelines.
In an announcement final December, Mudryk stated his failed drug check was “a complete shock” and stated he had “not done anything wrong”.
Chelsea launched their very own investigation and stated the then 23-year-old insisted he “has never knowingly used any banned substances”.
Mudryk believes his pattern was contaminated, with nothing thought to have modified in his weight loss plan since he handed a UK Anti-Doping check in August.
Mudryk has not been allowed to coach at Cobham and has as an alternative been on a person health programme at dwelling. He went to the Convention League last in Poland in a private capability, and though he was photographed carrying a Chelsea bodywarmer, he was not a part of the travelling social gathering.
The Ukraine worldwide, signed from Shakhtar Donetsk for £88.5m in January 2023, final performed for Chelsea in a 2-0 win at German aspect Heidenheim within the Convention League on November 28.
FA guidelines dictate {that a} participant is knowledgeable of a constructive check and provisionally suspended earlier than a choice is taken on a proper cost.
Sky Sports activities Information has contacted Chelsea for remark.
‘Mudryk faces authorized course of to clear title’
Sky Sports activities Information’ chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol:
“At the time when Mudryk was provisionally suspended, he was devastated. He feels that he has done absolutely nothing wrong.
“We all know that he had a drug check in August 2024, which he handed, and we had been led to imagine that his weight loss plan had not modified in any respect between August and November.
“He maintains privately that he has never taken a performance-enhancing substance. I’m led to believe that he thinks that his samples may have been contaminated.
“He is utilizing the identical legislation agency that Paul Pogba used when he was charged with an anti-doping violation when he was at Juventus.
“Mudryk is totally convinced that once the legal process has played out, he will eventually be cleared.
“Worst-case state of affairs, he’s dealing with a four-year ban, which implies that he wouldn’t be capable to play soccer once more till a minimum of 2029. We have seen different instances the place gamers have been banned for six months, a 12 months, 18 months, two years.
“We’ve also seen frequently when players have been found guilty of an anti-doping violation, they’ve gone to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, and they have had that ban overturned or it’s been lowered from two years to a year. This is going to be a long legal process.
“Chelsea’s place, when he was provisionally suspended, was that they’d do every part by the letter of the legislation. On the identical time, they’d take care of Mudryk as a lot as they may as a result of he is nonetheless an worker of the membership and this has had a devastating affect on him. They’ve been reaching out to him to ensure that he is okay.
“Chelsea have been prepared for this eventuality. Last season, they had Jadon Sancho on loan from Manchester United, who played in Mudryk’s position.
“Chatting with Enzo Maresca at his information convention within the US on Sunday, he talked about they’d positively signal a winger this summer time as a result of Sancho has left and that Mudryk shouldn’t be out there in the meanwhile.”
