CHELSEA legend Pat Nevin has warned the Blues they could create the next Kevin de Bruyne or Mo Salah if they sell struggling forward Mykhailo Mudryk.
De Bruyne, 32, and Salah, 31, left Stamford Bridge early on in their careers after difficult spells.
They have since gone on to become two of the best players in the world at Manchester City and Liverpool respectively.
Mudryk, 22, joined Chelsea midway through last season for £97million from Shakhtar Donetsk as the Blues hijacked Arsenal’s pursuit of the Ukrainian forward.
But he has endured a difficult first nine months in West London, scoring no goals and assisting just twice in 23 games.
However, club icon Nevin, 60, who spent five years at Chelsea during the 1980s, believes his former side have to keep faith in Mudryk.
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Speaking to OLBG, he said: “Mykhailo Mudryk is phenomenal and will come good – Chelsea cannot risk him being another Salah or De Bruyne.
“There’s a reason why Arsenal wanted Mudryk – he’s phenomenal. His pace is ridiculous and so are his skills.
“He had different problems to everyone else as he was a Ukrainian lad coming into a new country.
“There was also a massive transfer fee hanging over him, though the pressure is slightly off now due to the other fees Chelsea have paid.
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“I think he has the potential to be a great forward and a great creator.
“He came into a side that wasn’t playing well, but he didn’t make it easy for himself. His numbers last season were not good.”
Mudryk has had to deal with a tough time off the pitch as his home country continues to fight a war with Russia.
But Nevin, who won the second tier during his time at Chelsea, feels the Ukrainian will eventually settle and fans will see the best of him.
He added: “I always look at the underlying player and I don’t think Chelsea want to lose him. Chelsea know better than anyone that if you let a player go, they can be world-class somewhere else.
“He came in in January, which is a tough time for players to arrive. It’s early days this season, and I still have great hopes for Mudryk when the team starts clicking.
“That could be later this season or next season. He has all the qualities that defenders hate playing against.
“If Chelsea did cut their losses, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him shine somewhere else. He’s still only 22. You’d expect him, and a lot of other Chelsea players, to start finding their best form.
“The problem is, you have so many players who aren’t at their peak yet, and that’s why you need experienced players like Thiago Silva or Ben Chilwell to help the team gel.
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“It’s just not clicking as well as everybody at the club would have hoped.”
Next up for Mauricio Pochettino’s men is a West London derby against Fulham at Craven Cottage on Monday.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
