Vitaliy MykolenkoSports doctor Dmytro Babeleuk, known for his work with Lviv’s “Rukh”, placed the responsibility for Vitaliy’s condition on the medical staff of the English club:
“I don’t want to start with the words ‘I told you so’, but here we are. ‘Great thanks’ to Everton, who managed to put a player on the field on the 18th day after a muscle injury and immediately let him play 90 minutes twice within 3 days. This is outrageous unprofessionalism and amateurism! There are many emotions, let them find those responsible, but this is a failure of the structure — from the coaching to the medical staff of Everton.
It is unbelievable that this happens in a club of the level of the English Premier League in 2025! I find it hard to imagine how a coach with proper coaching education and understanding of football can make such decisions and knowingly expose a player to the risk of injury, which does not benefit the club, the national team, the player, or even the coach himself, who loses a key asset.
Now Vitaliy is facing rehabilitation, as a re-injury requires significantly more time for recovery. But whether this is of concern to anyone at Everton — is a big question…”
