Chelsea winger Mykhailo Mudryk has appealed against his four-year ban for breaching English Football Association doping rules..

Sky Sports reported on Wednesday that Chelsea's Ukraine international winger Mykhailo Mudryk has appealed against his four-year ban by the English Football Association (FA) for breaching doping rules.

According to the report, Mudryk maintains his innocence and says the ban has severely impacted his career prospects. Believing the verdict to be unfair, his legal team has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

The CAS subsequently confirmed the appeal, stating that it accepted Mudryk's appeal on February 25th. Both the plaintiff and defendants are currently submitting written evidence, and a hearing is scheduled for later.

Mudryk was initially banned for four years by the English Football Association (FA) in mid-December 2024 after testing positive for a banned substance in a urine test.

Afterwards, Chelsea and Mudryk himself confirmed the incident, but the player insisted that he did not intentionally use banned substances, but unknowingly ingested medication provided by the Ukrainian national team doctor to help treat an injury, and maintained that he was unaware that the medication contained banned substances.

When Mudryk's ban expires in 2029, Mudryk, who would be 30-year-old by then, will have essentially spent most of his time with Chelsea under suspension.

Last year, there were reports online alleging that Mudryk planned to switch to marathon running during his ban. As a result, immediately after the news was released, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) issued a statement banning Mudryk from participating in any other competitive sports during his suspension.

Since then, Mudryk has been training with non-league club Uxbridge to maintain his fitness.

Not long ago, Mudryk was suspended for 28 days by FACE IT for taunting his opponent and deliberately bringing up the Volhynia massacre during World War II during a Counter Strike 2 training match, fueled by frustration at losing the game. This made him the first professional athlete in history to be suspended in both esports and football.

About Mykhailo Mudryk

Mudryk, 25 years old, was born on January 5, 2001, in Berestyn, Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. He is 1.75 meters tall and primarily plays as a left winger, but can also play as a right winger.

Mudryk played for the Metalist Kharkiv and Dnipro youth academies in his childhood. In 2014, he joined the Shakhtar Donetsk youth academy and completed his Shakhtar Donetsk first-team debut by coming on as a substitute in a Ukrainian Cup match at the end of October 2018.

From February of the following year to December 2020, Mudryk was loaned-out to Arsenal Kyiv and  Desna Chernihiv.

In January 2021, after returning to the club following the end ofhis loan spell, Mudryk became a regular starter for Shakhtar Donetsk's first team. Several months later, his impressive performances for the Ukrainian national team in the UEFA Nations League garnered attention.

His world-class performances for Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League were often compared to those of legendary football figures, even attracting a strong interest from Arsenal.

In mid-January 2023, Mudryk abruptly joined Chelsea for a transfer fee of €105 million.

Since joining the Blues, until his suspension, Mudryk made 73 appearances for the Premier League giants in all competitions, scoring 10 goals and providing 9 assists, and helping the club reach the Carabao Cup final once.

Image source: Internet / Sky Sports Archive