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Mykhailo Mudryk backed by Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca after doping test result - ‘We trust and support him’
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Updated 18/12/2024 at 17:32 GMT
Chelsea winger Mykhailo Mudryk is provisionally banned from all forms of professional football after returning an adverse test result from a routine urine test. The Ukrainian is facing a four-year ban if found guilty of doping, but Blues boss Enzo Maresca has said the club believe the winger after he protested his innocence. Mudryk will not be part of the Chelsea squad to play Shamrock Rovers.
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Video credit: SNTV
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has said that he and the club "trust and support" Mykhailo Mudryk after the player’s adverse result from a urine test.
Mudryk is provisionally suspended from all forms of football until more is known about the result.
The player faces a ban of up to four years if he is found guilty of taking a banned substance, and the Ukrainian has protested that he did not deliberately take any prohibited substances.
Mudryk has not played in the last five matches for Chelsea, with the club saying he was suffering from an illnes.
He is not included in the squad for their UEFA Conference League tie against Shamrock Rovers on Thursday, live on TNT Sports and discovery+.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of the match, on Wednesday, Maresca said: "It's not the first time that something like this has happened.
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‘We support and we trust Misha’ – Maresca backs Mudryk after failed drug test
Video credit: SNTV
"It has already happened in the past. I think they know exactly what they have to do and this is the reason that we trust and support Mykhailo.
"If you say trust, what does it mean? We trust Mykhailo, and we support Mykhailo and trust means that we believe Mykhailo, we trust Mykhailo and we support him.
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"What Mykhailo said and what we said is that we trust him and support him."
Asked if he believes Mudryk is innocent, he replied: "We all believe that, then we'll see."
A four-year ban would be a huge blow for a player who had been struggling to nail down a place in the first team since his £89 million move from Shakhtar Donetsk in January 2023.
Maresca, however, does not think his career is over at Stamford Bridge, saying: "I don't think so. I think he will come back.
"The only thing is we don't know when. That's the only doubt we have at the moment. For sure, he is going to come back."
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