Shakhtar Donetsk chairman Rinat Akhmetov has pledged to donate £22m to the Ukrainian war effort following Mykhailo Mudryk’s transfer to Chelsea.
Akhmetov said the money would help a project called “Heart of Azovstal”, aimed at “helping defenders of Mariupol and families of fallen soldiers”.
Ukraine was invaded by Russia in 2022.
“I want to thank the entire civilized world for helping Ukraine,” Akhmetov said.
“Today we can talk about Ukrainian football thanks to the Ukrainian army, the Ukrainian people and the tremendous support of the entire civilized world.”
Akhmetov said he had “mixed feelings” about Mudryk, 22, leaving Shakhtar for Chelsea.
“I never hid that my dream was to win European trophies,” he said.
“It means that players like Mudryk should be invited to our club, to our Ukrainian league, and we should win European trophies with such players.
“Unfortunately, it is impossible now, because Ukraine is waging the horrible and unjust war against us by the Russian Federation.”
Shakhtar president says money from Mudryk’s transfer fee will be used to provide medical and prosthetic treatment, psychological support and meet specific demands to help Mariupol defenders and families of fallen soldiers fight.
“Their acts of bravery are unprecedented in modern history,” Akhmetov said.
He also said that Shakhtar will play a friendly match against Chelsea at the Donbass Arena in Ukraine.
Potter on beating Arsenal for Mudryk’s signature
Mudryk, 22, joined the Blues on an eight-and-a-half-year deal but looked set to sign for Premier League rivals Arsenal before completing a move to Stamford Bridge.
Asked about the negotiations which saw the Blues beat Arsenal to signing, Potter told BBC Radio 5 live after the Blues’ victory on Sunday: “We’re delighted he’s here, I have no idea how that happened.
“I’ve focused on the game, as you can imagine, but he’s an exciting player – a player with real quality, a young player who will need time to adapt to the Premier League and to us. , but we’re thrilled to have him.”
Todd Boehly, who led an American consortium when Chelsea took over in May last year, recently stepped down as interim sporting director, allowing new technical director Christopher Vivell and global talent director and transfers Paul Winstanley to play a leading role. in recruitment.
Mudryk is Chelsea’s fifth signing of the January transfer window after the arrival of Joao Felix on loan from Atletico Madrid, as well as the permanent signings of Benoit Badiashile, David Datro Fofana and Andrey Santos.
Until this season, Mudryk had scored just two goals in 47 appearances for three different clubs in Ukraine, but he has increased his Champions League stature this season, scoring three goals in six games for Shakhtar.
He could make his Premier League debut for the Blues against Liverpool, who sit one position above 10th-placed Chelsea at Anfield on Saturday.
