Shevchenko battling injury and boss Blokhin
Reuters - Tuesday 27 March 2012, 16:19
Ukraine's Andriy Shevchenko is
battling a series of niggles but still hopes to end his
international career on a high by appearing at Euro 2012 - if
his coach picks him.
The former AC Milan and Chelsea striker, a hero of Ukrainian
football for more than a decade, will quit the national side after
his country co-hosts the Euros with Poland in June just three
months before he turns 36.
His stature is such that just his presence on the field -
even for a short while - could provide an inspirational focus
for the team when they face Sweden, France and England in Group
D, Ukrainian commentators say.
Injury could be his biggest challenge, though, as he works
first on getting back in the Dynamo Kiev team where he started
and may end his football career.
"I have had this twice," Shevchenko told Reuters, slapping
his problematic right thigh. "But I still have time to prepare
myself.
"I have only just recovered and set about working with the
squad. I am preparing myself really seriously. It's very
important for me to play a few matches to be able to get game
practice. These months are crucial."
The European Championships, the biggest ever sports event in
Ukraine, looms large.
"Whether I play or not depends on my fitness. If my fitness
is at its best and I feel I can help the team, then I'll play,"
said Shevchenko, who has also had to come to terms with chronic
back pain.
"I just have to live with that."
Another stumbling block could be Ukraine coach Oleg Blokhin,
parachuted in a year ago to boost their Euro chances and not
certain to pick Ukraine's greatest ever goal-scorer.
Asked earlier this month about Shevchenko, Blokhin replied:
"Names do not play football ... if they did, I could be playing
now."
Media reports have linked the man known to millions as
"Sheva" with a possible move to Major League Soccer in the
United States to follow in the footsteps of former England
captain David Beckham.
"I am not considering any specific proposals at the moment,"
Shevchenko, whose wife is American, said at Dynamo's Koncha
Zaspa training ground.
"There are always offers... but I have to be 100 percent
certain that I want something, that my health permits me to do
something and that I still have the motivation to go to training
and the football pitch."
Shevchenko scored 175 goals for Milan between 1999 and 2006,
winning a Champions League, before a difficult spell at Chelsea.
He is the all-time top scorer for Ukraine with 46 goals.