Blanc in awe of Sheva
As Blanc prepares his team to take on Sheva’s Ukrainian side in Donetsk tonight, he is only too aware of the threat posed by one of European football’s most enigmatic – and Ukraine’s most charismatic – men.
Shevchenko scored with two headers to beat Sweden on Monday night and put Ukraine top of Group D, taking his international tally to 48 goals in 106 games.
His 58 Champions League goals leave him behind only Ruud van Nistelrooy and Raul in the competition’s goal charts, and he is second in AC Milan’s all time scorers with 175 goals.
He has a record 14 goals in Milan derbies, where former Inter defender Blanc got to know him so well a decade ago. “Sheva is someone I know well and he is a personal friend,” said Blanc yesterday.
“I was lucky enough to play against him. Sometimes I wasn’t happy because he was so difficult to mark.
“He is no longer 20 but he is still so clever in the runs he makes, as he showed in the first game.”
Which makes it all the more mysterious that Shevchenko endured such a miserable time at Chelsea with only nine goals in 46 games over a three-year period following his £30m transfer from Milan in 2006.
He never looked like a world-class striker in the Premier League, and appeared past his beast when he returned to Kiev three years ago. A series of ankle and back injuries have not helped, and even as recently as last week the striker was struggling to train because of a back problem.
But Blanc maintains he still has what it takes to set Euro 2012 alight. “He likes to get on the defender’s shoulder and is always in the right place at the right time.
“Great players show their ability at big tournaments, and he’s proving that, even at his age. My players will need to be close to him and not as they were for the goal England scored against us.”
Blanc is aware, however, that the host nation have more to offer than simply Shevchenko and added: “We will not focus solely on Shevchenko, we need to aware of the whole Ukraine team.”
The French faced widespread criticism back home for failing to beat England in the Donbaass Arena on Monday, even though the 1-1 draw extended their unbeaten run to 22 games. The former Manchester United defender knows he needs to beat Ukraine to keep alive France’s chances of reaching the knockout stages.
“We need to win and will do everything in our power to win,” he said.
“Whatever happens, the final game is still going to be decisive, but [we] must prepare to win the game against Ukraine otherwise our last game [against Sweden] will be crucial.”
He says his players were uptight against England certainly in the opening half-hour and wants them to be more relaxed, while also taking more responsibility.
“The attacking players make can make a difference, but in big games like these they need to relax a little bit.”
Just like Shevchenko, of whom Oleg Blokhin said: “Andriy is just a normal person and just one of 23 players in the squad. He is a great example of professionalism, especially at his age. He is a wonderful role model to the younger players.”
The coach bridled at Blanc’s assertion that France are underdogs. “I think England and France are the favourites in the group. If Blanc said France are an outsider he did not really mean it.”
It was celebration time in Ukraine after their 2-1 victory in Kiev on Monday, but Blokhin added: “I said after Sweden, we haven’t achieved anything yet.
“My main task is to give strength to the players and make it possible that we get through the group stage. I will do everything to give them the energy to perform.”
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