Chelsea star facing potential four-year ban from football

Chelsea player Mykhaylo Mudryk is facing a potential ban of up to four years after being charged by the Football Association (FA) with doping offences.

The Ukraine international was provisionally suspended in December after returning a positive drug test, reportedly for the banned substance meldonium. At the time, the 24-year-old said the result came as "a complete shock" and stated he had "not done anything wrong".

Chelsea added that he had "never knowingly used any banned substances". On Wednesday, Mudryk's spokesperson said the player's position remains unchanged and he would not be commenting further.

The FA released a statement describing details of the charge: "We can confirm that Mykhailo Mudryk has been charged with anti-doping rule violations alleging the presence and/or use of a prohibited substance, in terms of regulations three and four of the FA's anti-doping regulations." The positive result occurred shortly after the winger returned from international duty with Ukraine in November. After being absent from Chelsea for four games, before his suspension was made public, the club's manager Enzo Maresca initially said Mudryk was unavailable through illness.

He last played in the Premier League on 10 November as a second-half substitute in a 1-1 draw at home to Arsenal. Since his £88m move from Shakhtar Donetsk in January 2023, Mudryk has scored just 10 goals in 73 appearances in all competitions and has rarely held down a regular place in the team.

Read more from Sky News:British woman dies from rabiesUK temperatures 'could hit 46C in future''Murder' may be linked to diamond-encrusted Rolex Since Maresca took over at Chelsea in July 2024, most of Mudryk's games have come in the cup competitions and in Europe, with just a single Premier League start in August's 6-2 win over Wolves. Earlier this month Mudryk's number 10 shirt was allocated to midfielder Cole Palmer for next season, leaving him without a squad number at Stamford Bridge.

Mudryk has made no public comment on the case since a statement on Instagram in December in which he denied wrongdoing. The player also said that he remained "hopeful that I will be back on the pitch soon." Chelsea declined to comment..