Grant sends Shevchenko strong message

HULL, England: Avram Grant has warned Andriy Shevchenko he cannot guarantee the Ukraine striker a place in his Chelsea revolution.

Grant took the brave decision to leave Shevchenko out of his starting line-up for Chelsea's 4-0 League Cup third round win at Hull on Wednesday following his disappointing display in last weekend's defeat at Manchester United.

It remains to be seen if Shevchenko is recalled to face Fulham on Saturday but Grant insists he won't bow to pressure from billionaire owner Roman Abramovich to pick him unless he feels he is ready.

Jose Mourinho's refusal to select Shevchenko on a regular basis played a key role in the breakdown of the former Chelsea manager's relationship with Abramovich, leading to his departure from the club last week.

So Grant was taking a risk by axing Shevchenko, but he did little to assure the former AC Milan star that he was a major part of his plans.

But despite the ongoing problem surrounding the record 30 million pounds signing, Grant insisted he had the backing of the majority of his players and that this result showed the players wanted to perform under his leadership.

He said: "We have three games coming up within a week so we need all the players feeling fit and fresh and no player can perform three games in such a short space of time.

"It's too much. We have a big squad but we will need each and every one of them. Will he (Shevchenko) play on Saturday? I will have to think about it.

"I'm delighted with this result. I thought our passing and movement was good and we scored some good goals.

"It is most important that the players want to play for the club. Managers come and go but it is the players and supporters who are the most important.

"It's important that they show commitment at a high level for the club. It is not easy to do after what has happened but it's important they have the right attitude. At the end of the day we need to play football and be together."

Grant has assured England manager Steve McClaren that Shaun Wright-Phillips will be available for his country's crucial Euro 2008 qualifiers next month, even though the winger limped off at Hull.

Grant looked concerned when Wright-Phillips hobbled off in the 49th minute clutching his knee and looking in some discomfort. The midfielder pulled up after taking a shot at goal and was immediately replaced by Joe Cole.

Wright-Phillips will go for a precautionary scan on Thursday to make sure there is no substantial damage and could be rested for his side's Premier League encounter with Fulham this weekend.

McClaren must have greeted the sight of Wright-Phillips departing down the KC Stadium tunnel with some despair given the injury problems afflicting his squad at the moment.

He has seen both Emile Heskey and Michael Owen ruled out in the last week and can ill-afford to be without Wright-Phillips for the forthcoming qualifiers against Estonia at Wembley on October 13 and Russia in Moscow four days later.

But Grant, who secured his first win in charge of Chelsea thanks to goals from Salomon Kalou (two), Steve Sidwell and Scott Sinclair, believes Wright-Phillips will be available.

Grant said: "Shaun has told me he feels okay. He came off because his knee was hurting but he's told me afterwards that he now feels fine. So this is good news."

Hull forward Jay-Jay Okocha reckons Chelsea should get behind Grant and give him a chance to make a success of following in Mourinho's footsteps.

He said: "Chelsea have some world class players but they need to play as a team. They need to support the new coach and get behind him because if they don't the team will find it difficult to be successful.

"It was a difficult experience for us but hopefully one we can learn from. It is no disgrace to lose to Chelsea. They are one of the best teams in Europe."

AFP

(China Daily 09/28/2007 page19)