Mykhailo Mudryk, a 23-year-old Ukrainian winger for Chelsea, has been suspended from football after testing positive for a banned substance during a doping test.

Mudryk was signed by Chelsea for a transfer fee of €70 million, with an additional €30 million in potential add-ons. In total, he’s participated in 70 matches scoring 10 goals and 9 assists. However, since joining Chelsea, Mudryk has only appeared in 53 of their Premier League matches, scoring 5 goals and providing 4 assists. Mudryk has not had a major impact in the club like Cole Palmer who’s been Chelsea’s key player during their rebuild. Chelsea has expressed shock finding out Mudyrk has tested positive for doping and they have started corporate involvement in the investigation. Chelsea has ultimately supported Mudryk in denying any wrongdoing.

Chelsea could see their €70 million investment in Mudryk turn into a financial disaster. Now that Mudryk is not available, Chelsea has one less winger and 70 million euros less for the January transfer window. Mudryk’s reputation has been tarnished leading to a major decrease in his market value. The doping test could see Mudryk banned from football, effectively ending his career at the age of 23. 

One recent famous case of doping is Pual Pogba. He was suspended for 4 years which was eventually lowered to 18 months. However, not playing football for such a time could see Pogba underperforming in his first few matches. If this were to happen to Mudryk, he might not be able to play for years which could permanently hinder his abilities on the field. Mudyrk might be proven innocent with the upcoming B-sample of the doping test or could be proven guilty, essentially ending his career almost as soon as it started.