Chelsea winger Mykhaylo Mudryk faces the prospect of a lengthy ban after being charged with doping offences by the Football Association (FA). Towards the end of last year, it was confirmed that Mudryk had returned an ‘adverse finding’ from a routine urine test. He was provisionally suspended with immediate effect and has not played for Chelsea since November.
Mudryk has insisted that he did not knowingly break any rules or ingest any banned substances. His provisional suspension came when he was awaiting the result of a ‘B’ sample, following the news of his initial failed test. Now, the FA have confirmed that Mudryk has been charged with breaching anti-doping rules.
A spokesperson for the FA said: “We can confirm that Mykhailo Mudryk has been charged with Anti-Doping Rule Violations alleging the presence and/or use of a prohibited substance, in terms of Regulations 3 and 4 of The FA’s Anti-Doping Regulations. As this is an ongoing case, we are not in a position to comment further at this time.”
Under the current FA rules, players who submit positive doping tests could be banned for up to four years. As a result, Mudryk is facing the prospect of not being allowed to play competitive football until 2029.
The former Shakhtar Donetsk man has reportedly hired Morgan Sports Law to work on his case, with Chelsea also providing support. The law firm previously represented Paul Pogba in his appeal against a four-year ban, later reduced to 18 months.
Mudryk has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, having described the news of his positive test as a ‘complete shock’ shortly after it was first revealed.
In a brief Instagram statement, which he posted in December, the winger said: “I can confirm that I have been notified that a sample I provided to the FA contained a banned substance.
“This has come as a complete shock as I have never knowingly used any banned substances or broken any rules, and I am working closely with my team to investigate how this could have happened.
“I know that I have not done anything wrong and remain hopeful that I will be back on the pitch soon. I cannot say any more now due to the confidentiality of the process, but I will as soon as I can.”
Chelsea also issued a statement at the time, which read: “Both the club and Mykhailo fully support the FA’s testing programme and all our players, including Mykhailo, are regularly tested.
“Mykhailo has confirmed categorically that he has never knowingly used any banned substances. Both Mykhailo and the Club will now work with the relevant authorities to establish what has caused the adverse finding.”
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