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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport
Nizaar Kinsella

Mauricio Pochettino reveals Mykhailo Mudryk is a 'different person' after settling in at Chelsea

Mauricio Pochettino says Mykhailo Mudryk is a "different person" and beginning to trust Chelsea's coaching staff after a difficult start to life in west London.

The £88.5million January signing from Shakhtar Donetsk will face an Arsenal side who tried to sign him on Saturday.

Mudryk scored his first Chelsea goal against Fulham earlier this month and performed well with Ukraine during the October internationals, scoring a stunning goal and winning a penalty against Malta.

Pochettino is confident that the 22-year-old winger is responding to his coaching methods and changing as a person.

The Chelsea boss: "After three months he is not a completely different player because we are not magic but he is a different person.

“We are starting to see how lovely this guy is. 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.

“Micha is doing really well in his relationships with the team, the coaching staff, the medical staff, with the club. That is a massive improvement. It is not to give him some exercises or some advice about how to move between the lines or one very one.

"That is part of his talent but the most important is that he can feel confident and happy when you play football because you need to feel connected to the game.”

Arsenal defender Oleksandr Zinchenko was asked about facing Mudryk while with the Ukrainian national team.

Asked what he would do to his compatriot if he attempted to repeat his wonder-goal on Tuesday, he said: "I told him, 'If you do or attempt to do that on Saturday, I'll rip your balls off'.

Zinchenko's comments were put to Pochettino, who said: “No way, Micha is stronger than him.”

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