Chelsea keep fingers crossed on Shevchenko

CHELSEA will learn in the next 48 hours whether they will land AC Milan striker Andriy Shevchenko but may have to wait until after the World Cup to continue their pursuit of Manchester United’s Ruud van Nistelrooy.

Shevchenko insists he will reveal his future plans tomorrow while Van Nistelrooy, linked with a £15million switch to Stamford Bridge, has decided to leave his options open until after the finals in Germany.

Ironically, the Chelsea player most likely to be used as part of the deal to lure Van Nistelrooy, Eidur Gudjohnsen, has been the subject of transfer interest from England and elsewhere in Europe.