Chelsea's Mudryk 'grateful' as return to football confirmed

Mykhailo Mudryk is "grateful" for the opportunity to restart his Chelsea career after resolving his doping case with the Football Association (FA).

Mudryk has not played a competitive game since November 2024, when he scored for the Blues in a 2-0 Conference League victory over Heidenheim.

He received a four-year suspension after returning an "adverse finding" for the banned substance meldonium, which he appealed via the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

And on Friday, after the FA confirmed Mudryk's ban had been lifted with "immediate effect", the Ukraine international outlined his desire to get back on the field as soon as possible.

"After a long battle, the four-year ban that was imposed on me has been rescinded and I am free to resume my career with immediate effect," Mudryk wrote in an Instagram post.

"I am grateful that this process has reached a conclusion, that I have been cleared to return to football and that I can now look ahead to my future.

"This has been the most difficult period of my career. As I have always maintained from the outset of this case, I have never knowingly or intentionally taken any banned substance. 

"My commitment to competing fairly and representing my club and country with professionalism and integrity has always been important to me.

"My focus now is on returning to football, working hard every day, and making a positive contribution on the pitch. Thank you to everyone who continued to believe in me. I look forward to the next chapter of my career."

Chelsea also issued a statement responding to the ruling, which read: "From the outset, this has been an extremely difficult period for Misha, both professionally and personally, and we are pleased that the matter has now reached a conclusion which allows him to return to football with immediate effect.

"Misha has consistently maintained that he never knowingly or intentionally used a prohibited substance and did not know how traces of the substance entered his system.

"Throughout this process, he has conducted himself professionally and with resilience during what has undoubtedly been one of the most challenging periods of his career.

"We know how much this opportunity to return means to him. Our focus now is on supporting Misha's reintegration into the squad and helping him resume his career."

Having joined Chelsea from Shakhtar Donetsk in a big-money deal in January 2023, Mudryk has made 73 appearances for the Blues in all competitions, scoring 10 goals and assisting eight.