Chelsea have reportedly ended talks with Leeds United over a transfer for Mykhailo Mudryk, despite the winger wanting to move to Elland Road.
After his doping ban was resolved earlier this summer, Mudryk has been cleared to play for the first time in nearly two years.
Chelsea’s plan is to loan out the Ukraine international and there has been plenty of interest from rival Premier League clubs, namely Leeds, Brentford and Coventry City.
It was reported on Friday that Xabi Alonso’s team had rejected a loan offer from Leeds as it fell ‘well below their expectations’ but talks were set to continue over the weekend.
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However, BBC Sport now claim that before Daniel Farke’s side could make a second bid, Chelsea ended negotiations and don’t intend to send Mudryk to Yorkshire.
Moreover, it is said that after 20 months of no football, the Blues have warned prospective clubs that Mudryk must get plenty of minutes during his loan.
To that end, they want to include financial penalties in any potential deal which would become active if the forward does not play often enough.
Coventry, Napoli, Atalanta and Roma are interested in taking the player on loan, while a switch to fellow BlueCo owned club Strasbourg is also being considered.
However, it is said that Mudryk wants to keep playing in England and his preferred destination is Leeds, who won their opening Premier League game of the season against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
With just over a week to go before deadline day, the 25-year-old’s future is very uncertain and he is not expected to be in Chelsea’s squad for Monday night’s clash at local rivals Fulham.
It is not known exactly why Chelsea have turned down Leeds, though they also rejected a loan offer from Brentford earlier this summer as they wanted to include an option to buy clause in the deal.
Chelsea signed Mudryk from Shakhtar Donetsk for an initial £62million in January 2023. He recorded 10 goals and 11 assists in 73 appearances before his ban.
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