How Chelsea can get the best out of Mykhailo Mudryk against Southampton
By Tom Gott
The first 35 minutes of Mykhailo Mudryk's Chelsea career were about as exciting as they come.
The Ukraine international, for whom Chelsea paid an initial £62m to beat Arsenal to a deal, came off the bench to ignite a stale 0-0 draw with Liverpool, breezing past defenders and flashing his quick footwork to wreak havoc in the penalty area.
The 183 minutes that have followed that cameo have been almost the exact opposite.
Three thoroughly uninspiring outings against Fulham, West Ham and Borussia Dortmund have soured the general opinion towards Mudryk, with some fans already questioning his arrival and Arsenal supporters celebrating their failure to get a deal done.
With Graham Potter desperately searching for goals from his forwards, something needs to change, but what can be done to get Mudryk firing ahead of Saturday's meeting with Southampton?
How Mykhailo Mudryk impressed against Liverpool
A constant threat on debut! ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/Q1z4ZCxgcf
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 22, 2023
When Mudryk arrived at Chelsea, everyone knew what he was about. The 22-year-old is lightning fast with electric feet and a desire to dribble at every given opportunity.
Against Liverpool, and with the confidence that comes from being valued at an initial £62m, Mudryk brought all that and more. He was running at defenders, driving into space and inspiring absolute chaos among the Reds' back line.
While there's no denying that a combination of a tiring defence, a 37-year-old James Milner and limited examples of his game to study will all have contributed to Mudryk's explosive cameo, his Chelsea teammates also worked to ensure the Ukraine international stood out.
The famous clip of Mudryk burning four Liverpool defenders in a matter of seconds was only made possible by some under-the-radar movement from his teammates, whose positions forced the Reds to give Mudryk less than 100% of their focus - a near-fatal mistake.
It's the sort of play style that gets fans up off their seats but one which hasn't been brought out since that debut, and there are a multitude of reasons why.
What's gone wrong for Mykhailo Mudryk at Chelsea?
It's important to stress that a lot, but not all, of Mudryk's struggles can be attributed to outside factors.
For example, he brought an illness into his ineffective 45 minutes against Fulham and was hooked at half-time, with manager Potter admitting Mudryk hadn't been himself because of the bug.
The winger recovered in time to face West Ham but the main talking point of that game ended up being an uncomfortable fit alongside the same left-back who was on the pitch against Liverpool, Marc Cucurella.
Cucurella has faced intense criticism from Chelsea fans in recent weeks, not all of which has been justified. It was the Spaniard whose movement inspired that highlight reel run from Mudryk against Liverpool, but we haven't seen that since.
Accusing Cucurella of lacking any attacking input is foolish but concerns over his fit alongside Mudryk are evidently valid. The former Brighton man is more of an inverted full-back, and while that leaves a lot of space for his wingers, that's not necessarily what Mudryk wants. The winter signing even went on Twitter after the game and liked a post accusing Cucurella of not being good enough to play for Chelsea, so you can see where his mind is at.
By contrast, Ben Chilwell's return to the team against Dortmund brought more out of Mudryk. The Englishman's desire to get down the left wing and occupy defenders gave his teammate more opportunities to exploit new gaps on the pitch, although he didn't always take advantage of that.
There are also questions about Mudryk's decision-making over the past few games, with the player himself not free from blame here.
On this edition of Son of Chelsea, part of the 90min podcast network, Daniel Childs discusses transfer links to Ivan Toney and Jude Bellingham, and the recent booing of summer signing Marc Cucurella.
If you can't see this embed, click here to listen to the podcast!
How can Chelsea get the most out of Mudryk against Southampton?
Potter must work out the best fit for Mudryk on the left wing. Currently, that looks like Chilwell, whose attacking runs undoubtedly helped against Dortmund.
Cucurella remains an option, but the Spaniard needs work if he is to fit alongside Mudryk. The free-flowing, attacking flair that saw him excel at Brighton has disappeared, but if he can find that once again, Cucurella would be a fantastic partner-in-crime for Mudryk in the future - assuming there are no hard feelings over the Instagram post.
The rest of Chelsea's team also need to improve their link-up with Mudryk. An attacking midfielder like Mason Mount, who has been part of impressive triangles on the right wing with Reece James in the past, could also help create that extra yard of space for the Ukrainian.
Link-ups and Olivier Giroud-esque flicks in the box would also help Mudryk's high-octane game. Kai Havertz and Joao Felix are both excellent with this but have yet to figure out how to maximise their winger, but that should come with time.
On top of all that, Potter must also work with Mudryk on an individual level. Some of his blind runs into space that doesn't actually exist haven't looked great, so perhaps Chelsea's coaching staff need to slow Mudryk down a notch to allow him to take in his surroundings.
Fans shouldn't forget that Mudryk only joined the club in the winter and is part of one of the most aggressive, intriguing squad overhauls in history. There are going to be plenty of awkward moments as the cogs learn how to fit together, but over time, the pieces are there to build a working attack.