Afternoon:
10°c
No special treatment for Shev
28 Sep 2007
Andriy Shevchenko denies he will get any special treatment from Chelsea manager Avram Grant. The Ukraine striker turns 31 tomorrow and hopes to mark his birthday with a goal against Fulham to ease the pressure on both himself and his new boss.
Jose Mourinho's departure has undoubtedly increased the forward's chances of earning a regular starting place for the Blues, because of the extent to which his relationship with the Special One had deteriorated.
Mourinho's exit stunned fans and a report today claimed his sudden departure was sparked by a chance meeting with Roman Abramovich in a corridor at Stamford Bridge following Chelsea's 1-1 draw with Rosenborg.
The club's owner is said to have told Mourinho he was unhappy with the performance, to which the manager is said to have replied: "If you are not happy with me, then just sack me."
A little over 24 hours later Mourinho was gone and the fact that his replacement, Grant, has a far closer friendship with owner Abramovich should augur well for Shevchenko.
But the £30m signing is at pains to deny he will be treated any differently to anyone else at the club.
'I know him as director of football with the team, like every player,' said Shevchenko. "He is now manager and every player has the same relationship."
Tellingly, Sheva was trusted by Grant to play up front against Manchester United last weekend in the new manager's first game and his performance was satisfactory.
But he was rested for the midweek Carling Cup victory over Hull and is desperate to score against Fulham to help ease the club's problems.
He added: 'It's a difficult moment for the club, the players, the team, because of big changes in the house, so it's a time for the players to stick together and do our best for the club.'
'United away was a tough game, and after 30 minutes playing with 11, the team played well, were good in defence and tried our best on the pitch.'
'But after that we played with 10 [because of John Obi Mikel's red card] and that's very difficult.'
Shevchenko, who opened his account this season with Chelsea's sole goal against Rosenborg, has recovered from back and hernia problems and declared himself fully fit for tomorrow's match.
Chelsea will know today whether Shevchenko can be partnered by Didier Drogba against Fulham.
Last season's top scorer has recovered sufficiently from a knee injury to train for three days in a row. A decision will be made after training this afternoon as to whether he is fit enough to start - but the omens look good.
Ricardo Carvalho, who has been out for most of the season with a thigh injury, is also in contention but the game looks to have come too early for Frank Lampard - while Mikel is suspended.
Wayne Bridge, who made his comeback from a hip operation by playing as a sub against Hull in midweek, could again be included on the bench.
