Chelsea's stars took to the training pitches of Cobham on a chilly January day as new signing Mykailho Mudryk had his first opportunity to size up his new teammates after joining from Shakhtar Donetsk. The 22-year-old completed a deal worth in the region of £60million that could rise as high as £88million should certain conditions be met, but has not played in a competitive match since October.
He joined the group preparing to take on Liverpool at Anfield at lunchtime on Saturday with both teams 10 points away from the Champions League places. It will be the first time the sides face off this term having played four times during 2021/22. Each of those meetings finished with the sides level after 90 minutes, though Jurgen Klopp's side prevailed on penalties on two occasions.
The build-up to the clash has offered a rare opportunity to hold almost a week of interrupted training. With four new players having joined already this month in the form of Mudryk, Benoit Badiashile, Joao Felix and David Datro Fofana, it has perhaps never been more acutely needed.
