Chelsea players were reportedly ‘taken aback’ by Mykhaylo Mudryk’s entry into the dressing room ahead of their win over Crystal Palace in January.
Mudryk, who joined the Blues from Shakhtar Donetsk for an initial £62m, was paraded around Stamford Bridge prior to kick off, and the Daily Mail have now revealed that he was also introduced to his Chelsea teammates, and it didn’t go down well.
It’s claimed that along with Mudryk, a number of other indviduals – thought to be part of the Ukrainian’s entourage – were also ‘provided access into the team’s inner sanctum’.
The report continues: ‘The changing room area is widely viewed as a sacred place for players, particularly prior to kick-off when they are mentally preparing for matches, with strict rules over who is allowed into the space on match-days.’
The players were ‘taken aback’ as Boehly, Mudryk and his advisors were granted entry on the day of the Palace game.
The Mail adds that ‘the culture in American sports is different’, with even journalists often allowed entry into dressing rooms.
The report comes after it was claimed Boehly entered the Chelsea dressing room after the club’s 2-1 loss to Brighton on Saturday to deliver a ‘rallying pep talk’.
It is understood that Boehly described the current league position of the club as ’embarrassing’ and made it clear that Chelsea ‘had spent £600 million in the transfer market to win and that they have been falling short of expectations’.
An insider is said to have thought the whole thing ‘weird’ with another report claiming ‘one senior player, signed for a large fee in the past 12 months, was singled out for heavy criticism’ by the owner.
READ MORE: Ranking Todd Boehly mistakes at Chelsea: Lampard and ‘weird’ rant added to growing list
Interim boss Frank Lampard later insisted that he has no problem with Chelsea board members coming into the dressing room.
The caretaker boss said: “There may have been some criticism of our old owner for not coming to games, not being around, and that wasn’t always true to be fair.
“But when an owner is invested in their interest in the team and wants to help and improve, it’s their prerogative to have the input they want. I remember the moments as a player of owners first coming into the dressing room.
“It first happened at Chelsea. I remember being really happy that they were there. You could touch them, you could high five them and listen to them…
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