Gus Poyet believes that Mykhailo Mudryk has the potential to become the next Eden Hazard at Chelsea. The 22-year-old winger, who joined the Blues from Shakhtar Donetsk in January for an initial £62million, initially struggled to live up to expectations.
However, following the appointment of Mauricio Pochettino, Mudryk has proven that he can be a key player for Chelsea with eye-catching performances against Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Fulham. Following the retirement of Hazard, who also famously wore the No.10 shirt for the west Londoners, supporters will be hoping the Ukraine international serves the iconic number justice.
While Mudryk has quite the task on his hands to fill the Belgian's shoes, Poyet has confidence in the youngster. In an interview with the Evening Standard in April, the former Chelsea ace said: «Explosive, direct, very, very quick. The job Mudryk will have in the future is what Eden Hazard did at Chelsea — he’s that type of player and the potential is there.
»99% of the time, you don’t sign that quantity of players in January. That was the biggest surprise for me. If we analyse the players they bought, there is definitely a plan. They are players that have been signed for the future. The new message is patience."
Poyet may have wooed Mudryk with his kind words, however the 55-year-old has warned him that Chelsea must win some silverware. He added: «For a team like Chelsea, I don’t believe in transition years.
»When they go a year without winning a trophy, it doesn’t matter what they did the year before. No trophy and no Champions League football would be a very bad season for Chelsea. Every time you aim for less than that, you are not part of a winning mentality."
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