BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 14: Mykhailo Mudryk of Chelsea arrives at the stadium prior to the Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth an...
BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 14: Mykhailo Mudryk of Chelsea arrives at the stadium prior to the Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth and Chelsea FC at Vitality Stadium on September 14, 2024 in Bournemouth, England. (Photo by Ryan Hiscott/Getty Images)
Mykhailo Mudryk has been cleared to return to play less than two years into his four-year doping ban, despite the player admitting to committing the violation.
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 22: Mykhailo Mudryk of Chelsea FC looks on from the stands during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD3 match between Arsenal FC and FC Shakhtar Donetsk at Emirates Stadium on October 22, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 22: Mykhailo Mudryk of Chelsea FC looks on from the stands during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD3 match between Arsenal FC and FC Shakhtar Donetsk at Emirates Stadium on October 22, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
The FA have confirmed that Chelsea winger and former Arsenal transfer target Mykhailo Mudryk has been cleared to return to competition with immediate effect, allowing him to play for his club in the 2026/27 campaign.
Mudryk was a year and a half into a four-year doping suspension that provisionally began in December 2024 and came into full effect in May 2025. The 25-year-old’s last appearance for Chelsea was in November 2024.
So why have the FA agreed to end the suspension early, and does this mean the player’s camp have successfully overturned his ban?
LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 07: Mykhaylo Mudryk of Chelsea looks on during the warm up prior to the UEFA Conference League 2024/25 League Phase MD3 match between Chelsea FC and FC Noah at Stamford Bridge on November 07, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 07: Mykhaylo Mudryk of Chelsea looks on during the warm up prior to the UEFA Conference League 2024/25 League Phase MD3 match between Chelsea FC and FC Noah at Stamford Bridge on November 07, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
To the contrary, the FA have confirmed that Mudryk has accepted that he committed the anti-doping regulations violation with which he was charged, and that he’s agreed to the period of ineligibility already served.
The key element that has allowed Mudryk to return to play is that changes to the rules mean that if the player’s offending sample was collected today, the concentration of meldonium would not have been reported and no violation would have resulted.
The changes aren’t retroactive, so that fact alone didn’t get Mudryk out of his ban. But the FA took it into account, in addition to considering other unspecified circumstances, and agreed with the World Anti-Doping Agency that the ban he’d already served was sufficient.
LONDON, ENGLAND: Mykhailo Mudryk of Chelsea runs with the ball during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Chelsea FC at Emirates Stadium on May 02, 2023. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND: Mykhailo Mudryk of Chelsea runs with the ball during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Chelsea FC at Emirates Stadium on May 02, 2023. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
To put it simply, the FA maintains that Mudryk committed a violation, and that he’s now accepted this. But they’ve agreed to reduce his ban and allow him to return to play at this point, as a result of other circumstances.
Mudryk made 73 appearances for Chelsea prior to his ban, scoring 10 goals. He still has another five years on his contract, having signed a stupidly long deal back in 2023.
Arsenal are probably glad they signed Leandro Trossard that month instead, who became a Premier League winner before recouping most of the club’s investment in him with a move to Besiktas.
Leandro Trossard of Arsenal kisses the Premier League trophy, as Arsenal are crowned the Champions of the Premier League for the 2025/26 Season, after the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Arsenal
Leandro Trossard of Arsenal kisses the Premier League trophy, as Arsenal are crowned the Champions of the Premier League for the 2025/26 Season, after the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Arsenal
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