Kezman: Play me or I’m off

Martyn Ziegler

Kezman has been forced to play second fiddle to Didier Drogba and Eidur Gudjohnsen for much of the campaign, a far cry from last season when he moved from PSV Eindhoven having scored 105 goals in 122 appearances in the Dutch league.

The Serbia and Montenegro international insisted he is proud of how he has handled the situation but made no secret of the fact that he will deliver his manager an ultimatum.

Kezman said: "It has been a difficult season but I'm proud of myself because I changed my mentality a little bit.

"Last season I was always the star of the team, the goalscorer and the best player; this season I'm a little behind and I accept that and I have changed myself into a player who just plays for the team.

"When I need to play five minutes I die in those five minutes. It's difficult, and I don't know how long I can do it like this but for this one year I'm very proud and very happy.

"About my future, we have three more matches and it's not correct to talk about it before the end of the season. I like this club, the supporters are behind me all the time.

"After that though we need to talk about my future because I'm not happy, I cannot cope with it much longer. I'm at the best age and with my reputation it's difficult to understand that sometimes you need to sit on the bench, and then you lose your confidence and your rhythm.

"I'm a guy who scores goals in a rhythm and I just need that time."

Kezman has the option to return to PSV, but claims 10 other clubs are also interested in him and that he would be happy to stay in England.

He added: "The Premiership is very exciting and I'm happy that I'm here. It's nice to be part of the English atmosphere and to feel the spirit, it has been a fantastic experience for me and maybe it will be more than just one season, we will see."

Kezman also held out the hand of forgiveness to Slovakian assistant referee Roman Slysko, the man who awarded the now-infamous goal that saw Liverpool make it to the Champions League final at Chelsea's expense.

He said: "We saw on the television it's not a goal, but the referee gave it as a goal and we don't need to talk about it any more.

"We don't feel cheated too much all human beings can make mistakes and that is what happened. Sometimes the referee makes a fault our way. Referees are human beings and we don't need to attack them.

"It was a fantastic season because our target was the Premiership League and we won it, the Champions League would have been the jackpot and of course you feel sad when you come so close and were a semi-finalist also last season.

"Maybe only one time in your life you play a final so it's a pity but life goes on and we will feel better after a few days.

"We won't forget this, it will stay with us all our lives, but we will feel better by Saturday which is a big day for us and our supporters, and we will try to have a big party."