Chelsea target Georgiy Sudakov claims to have been told by his friend and international team-mate, Mykhaylo Mudryk, that he is ‘not ready’ for the pressures of the Premier League. Sudakov is set to leave Shakhtar Donetsk this summer and the Blues are among those to have discussed the possibility of a permanent move.
Mudryk trod the same path from Shakhtar to west London in January last year, but the winger has had a tough time of it at Stamford Bridge, notching only seven goals in 58 appearances following a mega-money £88.5million move.
At 21 years old, Sudakov is two years younger than his fellow Ukrainian, but the wantaway Shakhtar midfielder is adamant that he has what it takes to cope with the weight of expectations in the English top flight.
“We are in touch on a daily basis,” Sudakov told The i. “[Mudryk] is a big friend of mine. Over the last two months he has played a lot more and has been much more successful. The beginning for him was quite tough, mentally and physically, but step by step he is getting there.
“When we play in the national team together I have seen how much he has grown as the season has progressed. I was telling him about how much I want to play in the Premier League and how it would be great to play in the same team.
“Misha told me that I was not ready for the kind of pressure that happens in England and if I do come I need to be ready for that. But I am. The Premier League is my dream. It would be great to play there at one of the top clubs.”
Express Sport understands that Chelsea and Tottenham have both held discussions with Sudakov’s camp ahead of the summer transfer window. Shakhtar gave Napoli the chance to snap the youngster up for £43m in January, but the Ukrainian side are now demanding a significantly higher fee.
Although the wheels are turning behind the scenes, and Shakhtar CEO Sergei Palkin has openly admitted that Sudakov will be sold, the club are expected to hold off on a sale until after Euro 2024 in the hope that a good tournament will drive up his price tag.
Sudakov has racked up nearly a century of first-team appearances for Shakhtar, and he’ll be one of the first names on the team sheet when Ukraine line up to face Romania in their Euros group stage opener on June 17.
“Don’t be surprised if Ukraine do well at the Euros,” Sudakov continued. “We have reached a high level where we are respected around the world. Our results in Germany can be anything. I cannot put a limit on where we can go. Potentially we can go very far in the competition and I am ready for this.”
