Sheva zu Chelsea?

[Rui Costa]

[MILANISTA]

Andriy Shevchenko: Goalden Boy

With Andriy Shevchenko Chelsea-bound, Susy Campanale waves goodbye to the striker who has nevertheless booked his place in Milan’s history

From the moment he set foot on the hallowed turf of San Siro in 1999, it was clear that Andriy Shevchenko would find his place in Milan legend. The first foreigner to be crowned Capocannoniere in his debut season, the first Rossoneri star to lift the Ballon d’Or since George Weah in 1995 and now the second highest goalscorer in the club’s history. Following in the footsteps of the original ‘Golden Boy’ Gianni Rivera, and indeed jumping past them, Sheva has more than earned the right to take that title.

His brace in the 5-0 thrashing of Treviso on February 8 took his club tally to 165 goals, one more than Rivera’s total set in the 1960s and 70s. “It was a beautiful moment and very satisfying to enter into Milan’s history books,” noted the Ukrainian hitman. “One of my favourites was the penalty to win the Champions League shoot-out at Old Trafford, even though it didn’t count towards that total.

“Another was the goal against Porto in Monaco to take the 2003 European Super Cup, or the brace I scored against Roma in the battle for the 2004 Scudetto. I really like the goals that decide the trophies, or even the seasons, in that split second. However, I prefer to count up my achievements at the end of my career.”

As with all the great fairytales of football, it began with a near miss. Andriy was only nine when his family fled his home village to escape the effects of the Chernobyl disaster. Incredibly, he failed a dribbling test to enter a specialist sports school in Kiev, but was given a second chance when he was spotted by a talent scout in a youth tournament. The years under the tutelage of legendary Coach Valeri Lobanovsky made him the player he is today, lifting five consecutive League titles and two Ukrainian Cups at Dynamo Kiev with The Colonel at the reins. The effect he had on his career was not forgotten.

“Soon after receiving the Ballon d’Or, I flew to Ukraine to pay tribute to the Lobanovsky monument in Kiev,” he said. “For me, he was a sort of father-in-football. He taught me all I needed to learn when I was young - how to train hard, how to keep my distance from cigarettes…When I was crowned the European Footballer of the Year, I thought that presenting the award to his statue was the least I could do.”

His talent was already evident before his switch to Serie A, as he had scored eight goals to help Dynamo Kiev into the 1998-99 Champions League semi-finals, including a hat-trick at Barcelona’s Nou Camp. Facing off against some of the world’s best defenders in Italy has allowed the baby-faced assassin to go from strength to strength and send records tumbling along the way. Twice crowned Capocannoniere, with Milan he won the Scudetto, Champions League, Coppa Italia, European Super Cup and Italian Super Cup. In 2004 he became the first Ukrainian since 1975 winner Oleg Blokhin to be voted European Player of the Year and even received the Order of Merit from President Leonid Kuchma.

“Over the last few seasons I have received many awards, including the Ballon d’Or. It is very flattering to be considered an international star, but what really made me proud was to win prizes coming from different polls, whether it was journalists, fans or insiders. That was the proof that I am respected by everyone involved in the game – no matter what level they’re at. I think every footballer aims for that.”

Shevchenko has also earned comparisons with the greats of this sport and done so with facts rather than mere idle chatter. On November 23, 2005, he became the fifth man to score four goals in a single Champions League tie – the first away from home – when he single-handedly demolished Turkish outfit Fenerbahce. The first player to achieve this feat was fellow Milan legend Marco Van Basten. “Van Basten remains Van Basten, but I think these goals bring Sheva on to his level,” insisted Vice-President Adriano Galliani.

Unlike Rivera, the Ukrainian hopes to take his form for Milan on to the international stage. The Italian suffered the rivalry with Inter’s Sandro Mazzola and was never quite able to replicate his Rossoneri performances, although he did score a memorable goal in the 4-3 World Cup semi-final win against West Germany in 1970. To a degree, Sheva has already made his mark, as he helped the Ukraine to their first World Cup qualification by dominating a group that included Turkey, Denmark and reigning European Champions Greece.

“To qualify for Germany 2006 was a huge target for me, for the team and for the whole population in Ukraine, so I am very proud. We have been drawn in a tough group, with the likes of Spain, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia, but I still think we have good chances of progressing to the quarter-finals.”

Still only 29, Shevchenko seems to have found happiness in all areas of his personal and professional life. Having met supermodel wife Kristen Pazik [rumoured to be the reason behind his San Siro departure] backstage at a Giorgio Armani show, they married on a golf course – a sport they both love almost more than football – and he celebrated the birth of son Jordan with a goal against Sampdoria. A pedigree striker like him could mark the occasion in no other way.

“My life has totally changed over the last few years. The wedding, my new house on Lake Como and the birth of my son has made me a different man. Mostly, becoming a father was a milestone. My wife and I are so happy about it, though it obviously involves great responsibility. Jordan has allowed us to step forward from merely being a couple to becoming a true family. His baptism was a Catholic ceremony, as that is my wife’s religion. We have an agreement - for our next child we shall use the orthodox ritual, as is the custom in Ukraine.”

Farewell Sheva and good luck…

channel4

[tsl]

findest du es normal dass ballack in 3-4 monaten das gleiche verdient wie die meisten menschen in ihrem ganzen leben??? 

1079322[/snapback]

findest du es normal dass ein arzt in einem monat das gleiche verdient wie eine putzfrau in einem jahr???

findest du es normal dass bill gates in 3-4 monaten das gleiche verdient wie ballack in seinem ganzen leben???

findest du es normal dass tiger woods in einem jahr das gleiche verdient wie ein herminator in seiner ganzen karriere???

ich find es ok.

[MILANISTA]

findest du es normal dass ein arzt in einem monat das gleiche verdient wie eine putzfrau in einem jahr???

findest du es normal dass bill gates in 3-4 monaten das gleiche verdient wie ballack in seinem ganzen leben???

findest du es normal dass tiger woods in einem jahr das gleiche verdient wie ein herminator in seiner ganzen karriere???

ich find es ok.

1085255[/snapback]

Dem cleveren gehört die Welt!

[Bretwalda]

Dem cleveren gehört die Welt!

1085503[/snapback]

Den Phrasendreschern eine reingehaut.

[MILANISTA]

Den Phrasendreschern eine reingehaut.

1085675[/snapback]

Na dann tritt vor!..

[MILANISTA]

Laut einigen Quellen (tm.de, sports.it) wechselt Sheva für umgerechnet 66 Mio.€ zu Chelsea!!!

Na damit kann man leben!

[themanwho]

Laut einigen Quellen (tm.de, sports.it) wechselt Sheva für umgerechnet 66 Mio.€  zu Chelsea!!!

Na damit kann man leben!

1086426[/snapback]

Les lieber mal glaubwürdigere Quellen wie ORF, BBC, chelseafc.com für die exakte Ablösesumme (die bei rund 30 Millionen Pfund liegt). Außerdem war der Deal schon gestern um ca. 23:30 fix.

[MILANISTA]

Les lieber mal glaubwürdigere Quellen wie ORF, BBC, chelseafc.com für die exakte Ablösesumme (die bei rund 30 Millionen Pfund liegt). Außerdem war der Deal schon gestern um ca. 23:30 fix.

1086429[/snapback]

auf chelsea.com stehen aber keine Zahlen, klarerweise, da man ja offiziell ja auch keine genannt hat!

Aber letztes Jahr lag das Angebot für Sheva bei 50 Mio. Pfund, wäre also nicht verwunderlich wenn es heuer nicht ebenso wäre!..

Siehe auch channel4, und orf.at betrachte ich nicht als 100%ig seriöse Quelle!....