The Journey of Mykhailo Mudryk: From Almost Joining Brentford to Becoming Chelsea's Next Star

In the EFL Championship, Brentford was recognized as the ultimate recruiters.

Even now, Brentford dislikes their 'Moneyball' label gained during their recent tenure in England's second division.

A graphic of their 2019 summer transfer business went viral, showcasing their knack for discovering undervalued talents. This includes their current crucial players like Bryan Mbeumo, Mathias Jensen, Christian Norgaard, Ethan Pinnock and Mads Roerslev, as well as ex-stars like David Raya and Pontus Jansson.

Following their promotion to the Premier League, Brentford has been less shrewd with their recruitments. But, they still have a noteworthy list of missed targets like Brennan Johnson, Viktor Gyokeres, Vanderson, and Johan Bakayoko.

There was a keen interest by Brentford to sign Mykhailo Mudryk.

In the January 2022 transfer window, Christian Eriksen's return to football with Brentford post his cardiac arrest and Inter release became a major news.

Thomas Frank, having guided Eriksen in Denmark's youth setup, had hinted at a potential transfer in December 2021. Meanwhile, Brentford intended to make big-money signings to secure their Premier League status.

90min had reported that the Gtech Community Stadium's leaders were ready to sanction a spending spree worth over £40m if necessary. There were talks of signing Vanderson from Gremio, but the player eventually joined Monaco.

But for Eriksen's arrival, Brentford's failed approaches for key players like Johnson and Hull City's Keane Lewis-Potter would have marked the transfer window. They did manage to sign Lewis-Potter later in the summer.

Mudryk was another player Brentford had set their eyes on.

An initial dialogue was conducted with Shakhtar Donetsk for a move in January. Mudryk indicated that his future lay mostly in the hands of the Ukrainian champions' president, thanking Brentford for their interest, and decided to stay.

However, Brentford was determined to sign Mudryk, maintaining communication with Shakhtar for a potential summer move. Frank saw Mudryk as a promising star and a perfect fit for his team's dynamic setup.

However, Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 affected Shakhtar's future plans, causing foreign players to leave on emergency loans or suspend contracts. Shakhtar still hopes for a compensation deal with Tottenham Hotspur for Manor Solomon's free transfer. Considering Mudryk's skills and potential, he became an expensive asset.

Wingers' market value sky-rocketed across Europe, which forced Brentford to reconsider a planned £20m deal for Mudryk. They felt Shakhtar's new asking price was beyond their budget.

The 2022 summer window ended without a contract between Brentford and Shakhtar. The latter's assistant sporting director, Carlo Nicolini, reported they would only agree for a payment exceeding the £87m Manchester United paid for Antony.

Therefore, Brentford skipped an opportunity to sign an underrated player destined for big things. Their story with Mudryk was now of 'what could have been.'

During the 2022/23 Champions League group stages, Mudryk impressed against Celtic, RB Leipzig and Real Madrid, catching the eye of Europe's top clubs.

In the World Cup break, Arsenal scouted Mudryk, intending to bring a new forward for their Premier League title chase. Shakhtar rejected their two bids, with the highest totalling €70m (£61m). Mudryk expressed his desire to join Arsenal publicly.

Chelsea threw a spanner in Arsenal's plans by opening talks with Shakhtar in mid-January in Turkey. They quickly agreed on a fee that could reach Shakhtar's €100m demand, subject to all add-ons.

Brentford boss Frank, now an onlooker in the saga, commented at the time: 'Looking from the outside, I think Mudryk is a really good player. I think €100m, that's a lot for a player that's showing great, great signs of potential to do more, but maybe that's just the price-tag these days which is insane.

'What now looks like a very, very expensive player even though he's got huge potential, even with his CV I think it's a lot of money. Maybe it's worth all the money in two years' time.'

On January 15 2023, Mudryk signed an eight-year contract with Chelsea.

The talent has always been obvious with Mudryk, but he was a very, very raw prospect. By the time he left Shakhtar, he had played just 44 senior matches for them, a handful more for Ukraine, and outside a hot streak at the start of the 2022/23 season had shown little goal threat in his young career.

His development as a player, and almost certainly as a human being, was hampered by the pandemic and then Russia's invasion of his home country. Just as when fans sometimes fail to comprehend how players struggle to find form after injury, they overlooked how many quick but indescribably major changes were happening to Mudryk's life. And now he was a €100m player.

Mudryk's Chelsea debut from the bench brought life into an otherwise drab 0-0 draw away at Liverpool, coming off the bench to torment James Milner (admittedly, not the quickest of opponents or best of defenders, but still).

That was as good as it ever really got for him in his first few months in England. Both initial head coach Graham Potter and then caretaker boss Frank Lampard stressed the need for patience with Mudryk, who was trying to be a flair player in a Chelsea team that cratered and finished the campaign in 12th place. He would complete a full 90 minutes for them just once before the end of the season, while Brentford fans chanted 'you should have signed for the big club' in the Bees' 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge in April.

Had he gone to Arsenal, Mudryk might still have wilted in the sudden spotlight, particularly as the Gunners' title challenge went down the pan, but at least there he would have been surrounded by better players, part of a functional system and in more of a position to immediately succeed.

Mauricio Pochettino's appointment as Chelsea head coach in the summer of 2023 was excellent news for Mudryk, who was finally given the chance to work with a project manager who enjoys the challenge of improving young players.

The Blues have continued to falter so far this season, but there's a renewed belief that their arrow is finally ticking upwards again and results will soon match performances. Above all else, Pochettino at least has a semblance of a plan which Mudryk fits into.

'The problem with confidence is we cannot buy it in the supermarket. It is about time. You know how it works in the brain. It is about little by little creating situations that can provide the trust and the confidence and the belief,' Pochettino eloquently said in September before recalling a story about his crossbar challenge duels with Mudryk.

90min understands that Pochettino adores Mudryk and is a huge believer in his talent. The signs in recent weeks point to a player making headway in his own development - his touches are cleaner, his movements are sharper and he's more of a goal threat at Premier League-level. The Mudryk we're seeing now is more mature than the one who arrived at Stamford Bridge and far more deserving of his disgustingly cool 'Ukraine Bolt' nickname.

Chelsea and Pochettino will persist with Mudryk, but such an experiment feels far more worthwhile than it did a few months ago. There is an excitement and electricity about Mudryk's game that means he will get more chances and opportunities for years to come if he doesn't piece and knit together his game this season.

Mudryk's next opportunity to have his name up in lights comes at home to Brentford on Saturday afternoon - the first ever meeting between two of his biggest fans in Pochettino and Frank.