More than two years since the Russian invasion turned their lives upside down, Ukraine’s soccer players are one game away from reaching the European Championship.
Mykhailo Mudryk may often be on Chelsea’s bench these days but the talented — if inconsistent — forward could be crucial to Ukraine’s chances of beating Iceland in Tuesday’s qualifying playoff final.
Missile strikes on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, on Monday were a reminder of the persistent threat at home. Roughly half the squad plays in the Ukrainian league, where games are held without spectators and sometimes interrupted by air-raid sirens.
Tuesday’s game is technically a home fixture for Ukraine, but the war means it’s taking place in the Polish city of Wroclaw. Poland has hosted many Ukrainians who fled their homes and there should be a sizeable crowd, as there was when Ukrainian boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk beat challenger Daniel Dubois at the same venue last year.
Mudryk has never played a senior national team game on home soil. He made his debut in 2022, shortly after Russia’s invasion, as Ukraine narrowly missed out on a spot at the Qatar World Cup. He’s one of several Ukrainian players who have developed noticeably in the last two years.
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There’s Artem Dovbyk, who headed a dramatic winning goal as Ukraine came back from 1-0 down to beat Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-1 in the playoff semifinals last week. Dovbyk’s goals have been key for Girona in its surprise title challenge in Spain. There’s also Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin and 21-year-old defender Illia Zabarnyi, who’s been quietly effective in the Premier League for Bournemouth this season, playing every minute of every game so far.
Mudryk is 14 months into his career at Chelsea since the club’s American owners paid $108 million to sign him ahead of Arsenal, where he was widely expected to join Ukraine teammate Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Given the fees involved, Mudryk has been underwhelming at Chelsea. Of his last 10 appearances, only four have been starts, all in domestic cups. His last Premier League start was Dec. 27.
Recently, manager Mauricio Pochettino has used Mudryk as an impact substitute — and mainly as a No. 10, rather than on the wing — to exploit his pace against tiring defenses. He scored one stunning goal against Newcastle in the league on March 11 that saw him drift between two players on the edge of the area, round the goalkeeper and slot a finish into the net.
Those moments have been few and far between, and Pochettino has previously talked about the time it has taken Mudryk to settle in.
“We are starting to see how lovely this guy is,” Pochettino said in October. “He is so sensitive and smart. He is so clever. And how important it is to give confidence in life and in life to trust. When people trust, they can be open and start to express their talent in football.”
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
