Mauricio Pochettino thinks one Chelsea star “doesn’t have the football brain” needed to shine in his system in a damning new update.
Chelsea form under Pochettino
The Blues are currently preparing for an EFL Cup final against Liverpool this weekend as Pochettino looks to win his first piece of silverware at Stamford Bridge.
The domestic cup has been a welcome distraction from performances in the Premier League, with Chelsea currently 14 points adrift of a top-four finish. Recent heavy defeats to Liverpool and Wolves have put some pressure on the Argentine, something which he could relieve with a win at Wembley on Sunday.
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Pochettino will have some big selection calls to make ahead of the clash with Jurgen Klopp’s side, with the Reds having plenty of injury issues to deal with. However, if a new report is to be believed, one Chelsea star may not have much of a chance of starting the match after noises emerged on how the Blues boss and coaches view one particular player.
Pochettino not impressed with Mykhailo Mudryk
Football Insider shared a worrying update regarding Mykhailo Mudryk in the last 48 hours and his Chelsea future. It is believed that the winger’s future is up in the air after failing to convince Pochettino behind the scenes. In fact, ‘sources say Pochettino and his backroom staff at Chelsea believe Mudryk “doesn’t have the football brain” needed to thrive in his system’.
There are also question marks over his end product and as a result, a summer move is now away from Stamford Bridge is now on the cards.
This comes just months after Pochettino’s public praise of Mudryk where he said:
“He's a fantastic guy and he’s such a nice person. He’s very authentic and genuine. One thing I can tell you, he’s very honest and very trustworthy and a very genuine and spontaneous guy. I trust in him as a person, of course.
“And then as a player he knows he needs to keep improving. He’s still young and he is going to improve, because he has the quality. He’s a player that in his evolution is doing really well and we are so happy. For sure with time he’s going to be a very important player. He’s already an important player but he’s going to improve a lot because the potential is massive.”
The £130,000-a-week winger has struggled to nail down a regular role this season, though, making just nine league starts, being brought on 10 times.
Chelsea 2-1 Crystal Palace
7.43/10
Chelsea 2-2 Arsenal
7.39/10
Chelsea *1-1 Newcastle United (EFL Cup)
7.10/10
Everton 2-0 Chelsea
7.10/10
Fulham 0-2 Chelsea
7.05/10
It looks as if a move away for the Ukraine international could be one to watch, especially as there was interest from Bayern Munich back in January.