by engireman » Thu Nov 30, 2006 3:44 pm
Ene Gabriele Marcotti ovoo unen yum bicheed baidag yum shuu, shinjeech yum shig baigaa yum, Shevagiin talaar iim yum bichsen baina. Shevag yagaad Chelsead munginaad baigaad barag l bichjee
People who say "I hate to say 'I told you so,'" are, generally, liars. Saying "I told you so" is wonderfully satisfying.
The reason I bring this up is because, when the possibility of AC Milan selling Andriy Shevchenko to Chelsea first came up last April, I wrote that letting Sheva go was good business. For my trouble, I was called "very stupid."
Well, who's "very stupid" now? Shevchenko is being pilloried by the English press as an expensive, over-the-hill dud. Admittedly, Milan isn't doing too well, but that's largely because it didn't reinvest the Shevchenko money to strengthen the squad -- though, that said, the Rossoneri still have Sheva's $60 million lying around.
It's open season on Shevchenko. People blame him for all of Chelsea's ills. My good friend and fellow pundit, former Liverpool and Republic of Ireland star Ray Houghton, went so far as to suggest that, when he's on the pitch, Chelsea might as well be "playing with 10 men."
As so often happens, the media has gone over the top in its criticism of Sheva. It's one thing to suggest that, for $60 million, signing the Ukrainian was probably not the best bit of business, mostly because of his age and hefty long-term contract. It's quite another to say he's finished.
With this in mind, it's time for someone to stick up for Sheva and make another bold prediction: He's not finished, he will come good and make a big contribution to Chelsea this season (though probably not enough to justify his price tag over the life of his contract).
Why? Consider the following points:
• It takes time to settle in the Premiership and the English press is notoriously poor at predicting how well someone will do. Just consider its assessments of some of Shevchenko's teammates in their first few months in the Premiership.
Claude Makélélé was crucified, with some clever ex-players complaining that "he only passes the ball sideways and gives you nothing offensively." (No, duh! That's his job!) Now they all love him.
Didier Drogba was considered an expensive, overpaid uncoordinated big lump with the delicate touch of a sledgehammer. Now they all love him.
Michael Essien was described as an undisciplined, pedestrian hacker. Now they all love him.
• Settling into the Premiership is made even more difficult by the fact that Shevchenko spent seven years at Milan where the training methods and style of play are radically different from Chelsea.
Milan's training regime is based on a lot of individual work without the ball. Everything is precisely measured and monitored. José Mourinho, on the other hand, does not believe in a running-based approach. Most of Chelsea's cardiovascular work is done in three-on-three scrimmages and things like that. It's not that one way is right and the other is wrong, it's just they are different and, for a professional athlete (especially one like Sheva who takes training very seriously) it's a big adjustment.
Milan plays a lower-paced attacking game based on a intricate short passing and movement. Chelsea plays a faster, more physical game with more long balls and running into space. It's not as if Shevchenko can't adapt to Chelsea's style (though it probably doesn't suit his strengths as much as Milan's), it's just that it will take time to do so.
• Shevchenko has been nowhere near as poor as some have suggested. If you actually watch Chelsea play in person, his movement and passing is very sharp and has been improving in the last month (with the exception of last Sunday's clash with Manchester United).
When he plays behind Drogba in Chelsea's 4-4-1-1, he is an excellent provider. Drogba scored 13 goals in his first 15 Premiership and Champions League appearances this season, which is exactly as many goals as he scored in those two competitions all season long last year. Surely, Drogba's flourishing as a legitimate scorer has something to do with the guy playing alongside him?
We in the media love to build people up and then knock them down. It's what we do and, evidently, it's Shevchenko's turn to be crucified. But that doesn't mean that, with a bit of common sense and some proper analysis, you can't get to the truth: which is that Sheva is not the $60 million dud some would have you believe.
Forza Juve - We will back