Chelsea STRIP £89m star Mykhailo Mudryk of their No 10 shirt and hand it to Cole Palmer – and don’t even mention him in statement – in fresh update on Ukranian’s doping scandal

By SAM BROOKES

Chelsea have taken their No 10 shirt off Mykhailo Mudryk amid his suspension from football following his failed drugs test.

Mudryk, who joined Chelsea for £89m from Shakhtar Donetsk in January 2023, has not played for the Blues since November after testing positive for the banned substance meldonium. 

He has now been stripped of his shirt number, with Cole Palmer taking on the famous jersey.

Chelsea confirmed the switch in a statement that did not even mention Mudryk on Thursday morning.

The statement read: ‘Chelsea can confirm Cole Palmer will move to the No.10 shirt ahead of our 2025/26 campaign, starting from the FIFA Club World Cup.

‘Palmer, who has worn the No.20 shirt since signing from Manchester City in September 2023, will make the switch ahead of our participation in the US-based tournament and could wear 10 for the first time when the Blues face Los Angeles FC in Atlanta on June 16.

Mykhailo Mudryk has been stripped of his No 10 shirt at Chelsea after failing a drugs test

Cole Palmer is Chelsea’s new No 10 and is set to wear the shirt at the Club World Cup

Mudryk has not played for Chelsea in over six months, but was pictured alongside Enzo Fernandez with a Conference League winners’ medal last week

‘Supporters are reminded that the full list of squad numbers for the 2025/26 season will be finalised once the summer transfer window has shut.

‘They remain subject to change until that point.’

Mudryk losing his shirt to Palmer is the latest update on the Ukrainian winger who travelled to Poland to cheer on his team-mates in the Conference League final last week.

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca was unaware that Mudryk was even in the country when asked about him in his pre-match press conference, but the 24-year-old was on hand to witness his side pick up a 4-1 victory over Real Betis.

He was pictured with Enzo Fernandez at Chelsea’s post-match celebrations wearing a winners’ medal after scoring three goals in four appearances in the competition earlier in the season. 

Mudryk partying with the Chelsea squad was a rare sighting of the winger who has kept a relatively low profile since his failed drugs test. 

After news of his positive test went public and he was handed a provisional suspension in December, Mudryk released a statement insisting he had ‘not done anything wrong’.

Mudryk wrote on Instagram: ‘I can confirm I have been notified that a sample I provided to the FA contained a banned substance. This has come as a complete shock as I have never knowingly used any banned substances or broken any rules, and am working closely with my team to investigate how this could have happened.

‘I know I have not done anything wrong and remain hopeful I will be back on the pitch soon. I cannot say more now due to the confidentiality of the process, but I will as soon as I can.’

Just a few days later, Mudryk was at ringside to watch his fellow countryman Oleksandr Usyk’s heavyweight rematch against Tyson Fury in Saudi Arabia. 

Mudryk, who has just 10 goals in 73 appearances for Chelsea, remained silent on social media for the opening months of 2025 before finally breaking his silence in April.

Ahead of Chelsea facing Fulham at Craven Cottage, the Blues posted highlights from the same fixture last season when goals by Mudryk and Armando Broja sealed a 2-0 win at Craven Cottage – and Mudryk commented a single tear sad emoji.

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Chelsea STRIP £89m star Mykhailo Mudryk of their No 10 shirt and hand it to Cole Palmer – and don’t even mention him in statement – in fresh update on Ukranian’s doping scandal

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