Shevchenko and the sad years at Chelsea (Part 6)

British media began to spread the news that Mourinho and Abramovich were tense over Sheva. Because of Sheva’s unexpected performance, Mourinho kept him on the bench.

When referring to the eight inexpressible faces in the starting lineup, Mourinho of course did not call Sheva’s name. The press began to spill out the story: “Mourinho feels uncomfortable with players who have a close relationship with Abramovich”.

Sheva is not a star player. When Mourinho gave instructions, he bowed his head. He is also a disciplined player, always trying to improve the situation. He never complains, does not speak ill of anyone, nor is the type of player gloomy because things are not as expected. Mikel said: “If I don’t play the weekend, Sheva is still early in the week and training very well. Seeing Sheva’s conduct, a young player like me has learned a lot of lessons. I really learned a lot of words from him”.

After starting in the final where Chelsea beat Arsenal to win the League Cup, Sheva was injured. He was sidelined in the first FA Cup final held at the newly renovated Wembley Stadium. There, Drogba helped Chelsea defeat Man Utd. Sheva also sat outside the Champions League final, where Chelsea lost the title to Man Utd.

In the summer of 2007, tensions between Mourinho and Abramovich showed no signs of abating. Mourinho wants to add a class striker to increase pressure, forcing Sheva to try harder. But he only got Claudio Pizarro to come on a free transfer. Not only that, Abramovich also appointed Darren Campbell – the sprinting athlete to the British Olympic Games – to the team to help Sheva improve his fitness. He wants to do the best for the Ukrainian star, although Mourinho doesn’t really want to add people to his coaching team. Sheva still hasn’t talked to her teammates any more. He was further away when he moved to Wentworth in Surrey, where his family fought against a famous golf course. And since then, Sheva has shared her love of football with another sport.

Midfielder Steve Sidwell told The Athletic : “He wears golf clothes all day. I didn’t mean to say that Sheva is a person separate from the crowd. When training, he still practices seriously.”

But is football still the number one thing in Sheva’s life as long as he wanted to make a name in Milan? Sheva is now a father of two, and suddenly finds golf is a wonderful sport. Distraction is understandable. Just a month after the new season began, Mourinho was sacked after a 1-1 draw at home to Rosenborg. Sheva is the goalscorer for Chelsea. And it seems that Darren Campbell is showing that his presence has a noticeable effect on Sheva.

Campbell said at the time: “Under Mourinho, Sheva did not play the familiar way of playing in Milan. There, he was always sprinting to catch the ball by working with a running coach. 30 meters. first means decisive”.

But then everything was … the same. Even when Abramovich’s best friend Avram Grant was appointed with the clear goal of reviving Sheva’s form. Once again, there were only moments that flashed hope, then sank. Against Aston Villa in December, he scored a brace and injured his back in the same match. Sheva takes several months to recover. Later he also suffered from intestinal prolapse.