Considered the best player in Ukraine’s football history since the country’s separation from the former Soviet Union (in 1991), Andriy Shevchenko has been experiencing distressing days since the outbreak of war in his country.
Married and father of four, residing in England and strong ties to Italy, Shevchenko, 45, says that the Russian invasion made him completely disconnect from football.
The former striker, Ukraine’s top scorer (48 goals), continues his coaching career.
He led Ukraine to Euro 2020 (played in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic), reaching the quarter-finals, and directed Genoa until mid-January this year.
But the sport, for him, has been “played to the side”, left aside, forgotten for a week.
“Football doesn’t exist for me anymore. I don’t think about it, it’s not the time for it. I’m not watching any sport, nothing,” Shevchenko told London channel Sky Sports.
“All my focus, when I wake up, is thinking about how to help my country, what I can do. That’s my field, my concentration, right now.”
The second most used player for the Ukrainian national team – 111, behind former midfielder Anatolyi Tymoshchuk (144) – has very close relatives and several friends living in Ukraine, mainly in the capital.
“It’s a very difficult time for my country, my people, my family. My mother [Mykola] is my sister [Elena] are in Kiev, and there are terrible things happening. People are dying, missiles are aimed at houses.”
Information on deaths from both the Ukrainian (military and civilian) and Russian (military) sides is not accurate.
According to the UN (United Nations), until Tuesday (1st) 227 civilians had lost their lives in the confrontation. There are hundreds of wounded, and the number of refugees is over a million.
“We need to stop this war, we need to find a way to stop the war. We have refugees, we need humanitarian aid, medical support, food”, declared the former Milan, Chelsea and Dynamo Kiev striker, in a tone of appeal to the world.
After four months of crisis with the West, Vladimir Putin’s Russia decided to attack Ukraine on February 24. It is the most serious military crisis in Europe since the Second World War.
Shevchenko claimed to have tried to convince her mother and sister to leave the city and the country, without success. “The answer is no. They want to stay there. That’s the Ukrainian spirit.”
The former gunner, who has acted to encourage and organize donation campaigns to help his countrymen in the war, captained Ukraine in the country’s first and so far only participation in a World Cup.
In 2006, in Germany, the Ukrainian team, famous for its yellow uniform, advanced to the quarterfinals, when it was eliminated by Italy, which would become champion of the competition.
Shevchenko won a Champions League in 2003 with Milan, and is the owner of the Golden Ball (2004), a traditional award given by France Football magazine to the best player in the world.
Also in 2004, he received the honor of “Hero of Ukraine”, given by the government, the highest distinction that can be offered to a citizen of the country.
Shevchenko even tried a political career at the beginning of the last decade, joining the social democrat Ukraine – Forward. The party, however, was not successful in the legislative elections.
