Enzo Maresca has called out Mykhailo Mudryk for his performance in Chelsea's 6-2 thrashing of Wolves in the Premier League.
In a back-and-forth match at Molineux, Chelsea secured their first win of the 2024/25 Premier League season.
Nicolas Jackson gave the Blues a very early lead, which was quickly equalized by Matheus Cunha. However, Chelsea's star from last campaign, Cole Palmer, regained the advantage with an ice-cold lobbed goal from distance.
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Their advantage was once again short lived with Strand Larsen finishing a well-worked set piece to put Wolves level at the break.
Despite the even first half, the second half saw Noni Madueke net an exceptional 14-minute hat-trick before the returning Portugal international Joao Felix added a sixth in emphatic style.
Although Chelsea were outstanding in attack on Sunday, one attacking star did not leave Maresca impressed.
When asked why Mudryk was substituted for Pedro Neto at half-time, Maresca explained the Ukrainian just wasn't up to the standard he expected.
"Because I was not happy. Because I think in some moments we can manage some situations better, he was working very good off the ball, very hard, and I think that's good," Maresca said after the match.
"In terms of on the ball, I just expect a bit more quality from Misha (Mudryk), but for me, I feel he had some good moments the other day and he had some good moments today. The reason to change was just to give Pedro some minutes."
Mudryk was one of the early signings of the Todd Boehly era, with the winger joining from Shakhtar in January 2023 for a reported €70m according to Transfermarkt.
Since his move to the Premier League, Mudryk has featured 47 times for Chelsea scoring five times and registering four assists.
The 23-year-old was tipped to finally be the man to replace Eden Hazard at Chelsea but up to now, he has never reached the heights expected despite a promising start at Stamford Bridge.
Tom Jenkins