SHEVCHENKO – CRIME AND PUNISHMENT?

Sheva Training Hard
By dixon9
February 10 2007

Sheva has been for some time now, coming in for a lot of criticism with regard to his performances and lack of goals. The media, some (but not all) Chelsea fans, and even at one point, José Mourinho included him in a recent, post match, “some of you need a kick up the back-side” interview.

So why is it a player of such undoubted class and pedigree is not leaving everyone breathless with his play and goals?

 

Some opposition clubs fans would tell us “He’s past it!”; “Mourinho doesn’t know how to play him!”; “He’s on a last pay-day holiday!”  Others would point out that it often takes some new foreign players to the PL up to a full season to get accustomed to our frenetic football.  We’ve seen enough evidence of this over the years yet some of us still expect an "instant packet soup" solution - you buy a class player, open him up, add boiling PL water and hey presto - it works!  Sorry! Doesn’t work like that!  I feel there is some merit in the latter conclusion, although, in my view, there’s more to it than that:

 

Sheva gets little or no service. I've lost count the amount of times I've seen him running into space in or near the box, expecting the pass and then having to brake after the moment is missed (because of selfishness of the other player in possession or simply because that player didn't have the vision to make the potentially, killer pass).  Sheva is then left extending both arms forward, pointing to the space, as if to say "WHY DIDN'T YOU PUT IT IN THERE!”

Unfortunately, the players required to give adequate service to him are; Joe Cole (injured), an unselfish Robben (now unselfish but injured) or Ballack (unfortunately, Frank doesn't want to lose his forward "spot" so Ballack's nearly always to deep).

 

There is another more perhaps sinister matter of that knee injury from just before the World Cup - any bets that he’s STILL a bit crocked  and that once he’s healed and fully match fit we’ll see the real Shevchenko?  It has been reported that Sheva actually flew his old, private physio in from Italy to look again at the problem.  It’s certainly true that Sheva is doing extra training at the moment at Chelsea´s Cobham training complex, where they have put down sand dunes to help simulate altitude training which helps players when coming back from injury.

 

Whatever the reasons, I’m not prepared to accept that such a player is suddenly a “dud” (nor is Wayne Rooney, who’s scored less goals then Sheva this season and is incredibly being lauded as “surplus to requirements" by some Man United fans!).

 

Personally find it heart warming that Sheva´s recently stated that he’s not going to be distracted from criticisms, he’s going to get back to his best and finish his career at Chelsea.  Hopefully it won’t be long before we see him darting into positions, demonstrating that so lethal finishing he’s capable of.