Andriy Shevchenko – Best Ukrainian Striker Ever

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The biography and professional career of the Ukrainian football legend – Andriy Shevchenko. His age, attacking stats, height, working foot, net worth, and hobbies. Personal life: parents, wife, children. Coaching and political career; his attitude to Russian aggression in 2022

Andriy Shevchenko – Milan Legend and Ukrainian Hero

  • Nickname: King, Devil from the East, Sheva
  • Age: 45 years (September 29, 1976)
  • Position on the pitch: attacker
  • Height: 183 cm
  • Weight: 73 kg
  • Work foot: right
  • Strong sides: speed, dribbling, finishing from both legs and head, shoots outside penalty box

Birthday and early years

The future legend of Ukrainian and European football, Andriy Shevchenko, appeared in this world in 1976. At the end of September (29), the family of Shevchenko, who lived near Kyiv (Ukrainian capital), was praised with the son. It happened in the village Dvirkivshchyna, which is located in the Yahotyn district.

Only a few people know that the future star could be born and start a career in the GDR, which was one of the two German countries before the fall of the Berlin wall. Mykola Shevchenko, the footballer’s father, an ensign in the Soviet army, served in a group of Soviet troops in Germany. But just a few months before Andriy’s birthday, the family of Shevchenko relocated to Dvirkivshchyna, Kyiv region. “When he grew up – he would be an officer. Even a general, “Mykola Shevchenko said at the time. Having served as an ensign, his father wanted to see Andriy military and high-ranking. But fate decided otherwise.

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The birthday of Andriy Shevchenko became a nice case for the family to move directly to Kyiv. The youngster was studying in the 216th school, whose students are now fighting to sit at Shevchenko’s desk. However, “Shevchenko was sitting here” was scratched on several tables at once, and no one can say which of them is Shevchenko. According to the reminds of the teachers, the class in which Andriy was studying was not considered strong. It was recruited from children who did not pass into groups with in-depth study of physics and mathematics. But this did not prevent the boys from evolving into a friendly and responsive team. The leader, of course, was Andriy. He also participated in diverse activities, collected waste paper, and interceded for the girls. In general, it differed little from ordinary students. Find out more today match prediction football as we always choose the most exciting matches for your attention.

Andriy Shevchenko photo

Early football steps

Andriy was initially very fond of hockey, but his father “set up” his son for football. When Shevchenko was nine years old, the youngster entered the youth team of Dynamo Kyiv – a national football brand in Ukraine with success on the international stage. It happened thanks to Oleksandr Shpakov, who was the first coach of Andriy. In 1986, Sheva almost said goodbye to football. With the explosion of the nuclear reactor at the Chernobyl electric station, the family was forced to move to another region – near the Sea of ​​Azov without any explanation. The family found out about what happened only after the relocation.

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One of the school posters once stated: “In order to increase the level of physical training of students, everyone should do exercise before classes. Attendance is required! “Every morning, the headteacher stood in front of the school entrance and wrote down those who were late. “Your Shevchenko did not come again. He doesn’t think about his health at all,” she told the class teacher. What kind of exercise could a 12-year-old boy think of when a trip to Italy, the country of the most beautiful football, loomed on the horizon! At that time, Andriy seriously trained for two or three hours a day at the football school “Dynamo”, participated in children’s tournaments and was among the contenders for a trip to Europe.

Once in Milan at the famous San Siro Stadium, Andriy went crazy with happiness: “Dream! Fantastic dream! He thought. Since then, the young Ukrainian dreamed only of “Milan”. “Play in such a team! Here is real happiness!” – said the youngster. But a week later, the dream ended, as he had to return to the Ukrainian capital – Kyiv. Before leaving for the airport, Andriy decided to miss breakfast but walked once again to the legendary stadium. He wanted to have some time there and once again look at the miracle arena, saying goodbye to it. He believed he could return to it by leaving a coin there in the future.

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At home, he began to train with even greater diligence and decided to dedicate himself to sports and become a real professional footballer. The teachers understood the desire of Andriy and did not interfere with him, even though it did not have the best effect on his regular schooling success. Due to constant travels, he missed many classes and did not receive high marks. “How will you, Andriy, communicate abroad with people without knowledge of a foreign language?” the English teacher asked. “I’d study it when it would be needed,” he replied.

Andriy Shevchenko Early football steps

In the seventh grade, Andriy brought a newspaper from the competition with a note about himself and presented it to the class teacher. She was pleased to read an article about her student as a talented athlete, and she asked: “Andriy, please sign:” From the future champion. “And he frowned and said that “from the future champion” will not be written. A classmate was standing nearby, who suggested writing these words for Andriy: “You, Andriy, just need to sign.” The young football player thought a bit, then agreed and left his first autograph under a note!

Andriy’s parents were initially opposed to their son’s capture. The father of the guy, Mykola Shevchenko, tried to persuade his son to skip his football career and join a military profession. And to continue training, the youngster had to pass throughout the whole city. But Shpakov, his football coach, convinced the parents of Andriy to continue development in football due to real perspectives. The only obstacle at that time was the explosion on Chernobyl, but when the accident was eliminated, the family of Shevchenko returned, and Andriy continued football training.

First achievements and way to national popularity

In 1990, young Andriy became the most notable player at the “Ian Rush Cup” – friendly tournament. Shevchenko scored the most among all the age categories and received an exclusive gift from the hand of Rush – Welsh and Liverpool’s legend. At that time, it was not easy to get good football equipment in the USSR.

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The further life of Andriy could go in quite another way, but he failed to pass exams for entering the Kyiv Institute of Physical Culture. Fortunately, the management of Dynamo helped, and Andriy was accepted. And not in vain. After some time, Sheva’s talent was noticed on the national level, and so he joined the Olympic team of Ukraine. It was the last element of the puzzle that confirmed his football talent. The further his steps were only to the heights, until 2006.

Champions League success and record transfer to Milan

In 1997, Dynamo Kyiv was among the strongest teams in Europe. The Ukrainian team that consisted of mostly local guys were beating Spanish grands like Real Madrid and Barcelona with ease. For Shevchenko, the most notable performance against the Catalonians, as Andriy scored three at Camp Nou.

Of course, a lot of clubs paid attention to the young striker, and Milan was ready to pay $ 17 million for the youngster. However, Dynamo’s management decided to wait a little bit for a bigger sum. In just two years, after the continuing success of Dynamo in the Champions League, Milan boss Silvio Berlusconi decided to give a huge amount of money to the Ukrainian attacker. According to the sources, the transfer fee was about $25 million. And in the middle of the summer, 1999, Sheva joined the club where he became the legend – Italian Milan. To win more with huge bonuses, higher odds, and without risks – visit our betting sites for football in India rankings page. A fresh review of the most reliable offers for Indian bettors will be helpful for you.

Becoming a legend in the top European clubs means notable achievements, and Andriy delivered them. Thus, he became the best scorer in the Serie A, scored the decisive penalty in the Champions League final against Juventus, and brought several Sucdettos for Milan as well. He was scoring in the super principal games outside of the penalty box or after solo dribbling attempts, and the love of the fans was enormous. The darkest page in this history was the defeat in another UCL’s final against Liverpool after Milan was leading 3:0 after the first 45 minutes. However, the English club made the most notable comeback and won a penalty shootout, where Andriy missed the decisive shot. His partnership with Kaka in the 2000th was one of the most scarring duos in the whole world.

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Andriy very quickly conquered the Italian fans. In just a couple of matches, he was no longer allowed to pass, asking for an autograph. They became interested not only in fans but also high-ranking people in society; he began to be invited to various secular receptions. Right there, Andriy Shevchenko befriended the famous designer Armani and found his future wife – Kristen Pazik, whom he later married.

Andriy Shevchenko Champions League

Successes in personal life made themselves feel – on the field, Andriy became even faster and more insistent. Andriy Shevchenko’s happiness did not end, but there was one thing that overshadowed the star – the death of the great Dynamo coach, Valery Lobanovsky. Shevchenko was indebted to him for everything he achieved.

The career peak can be easily guessed – 2004. During that year, Shevchenko was the best scorer in Serie A and grabbed the Ballon d’Or (golden ball award). In that period, he was among the most dangerous attackers on the global level as he could win games on his own. That was because of his universal playstyle – he had pretty good speed and dribbling while was able to score from outside of the box and headers at the same time.

Move to Mourinho’s Chelsea and career finish

In 2006, it was obvious that Shevchenko needed some changes in life, including football, as he achieved everything in Milan’s jersey. Therefore, Andriy agreed to move to Chelsea, while the amount of the transfer was not less than 40 million pounds. Jose Mourinho, the Chelsea coach, was indescribably pleased with this acquisition of the team management, and almost everyone was happy, except for the fans of Milan. Sheva said that he just moved from one European team to another, and he needs a new career call without any relation to money. Looking now at the transition of Andriy, we want to say that it would be better if he avoided that step. After playing a couple of matches for Chelsea and even scoring some goals, Shevchenko lost the competition to younger striker Drogba and was benched. After that, the coach gave him a chance to play from the starting squad, but Andriy wasn’t successful. As a result, Chelsea agreed on a loan to his former club, Milan. Unfortunately, even that step wasn’t right, and Shevchenko couldn’t show his class at the top level anymore. The last move was to the native Dynamo, where he played a couple of years and helped younger partners to develop their skills.

Andriy Shevchenko Ukrainian national team

Stats in the Ukrainian national team, political and coaching career

Sheva’s career in the national team lasted for 17 years. During this time, he played 111 matches and scored a record – 48 goals. Multiple times he was a captain of Ukraine on the international stage. After the career finish and home EURO 2012, Andriy tried his forces in the politics but joined a losing party that failed to enter a parliament. He understood that lesson and then took part only in football-related activities.

Thus, Shevchenko’s first coaching steps were in 2016, when he entered the squad of Ukrainian national coaching staff and assisted Fomenko. After the departure of the latter, Andriy became the main coach of the Ukrainian national team and led it to notable heights. Thus, the Yellow-Blues finished first in the tough qualification group with Portugal and Serbia and flew to Euro 2020, where they reached a quarterfinal.

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However, after some tensions with the local football federation, he left his post in 2021. Thus, in autumn 2021, Andriy became the head coach of Italian club Genoa. However, Griffin’s club was already struggling before his arrival, and Sheva couldn’t change the situation. In just a few months, he left his coaching position in Genoa and now is free for work.

Awards and achievements:

  • The five-time champion of Ukraine
  • Three-time winner of the Cup of Ukraine
  • The second top scorer in the history of Milan
  • 2002/2003 – winner of the Italian Cup, winner of the Champions League
  • 2003 – Winner of the UEFA Super Cup
  • 2003/2004 – champion of Italy
  • 2004 – winner of the Golden Ball
  • 2006/2007 – winner of the FA Cup
  • 2009 – winner of the Super Cup of England

Family: parents, wife and children:

  • Wife: Kristen Pazik, famous model (married since 2004).
  • Children (four sons): Jordan (2004), Christian (2006), Alexander (2012) and Ryder-Gabriel (2014).
  • Sister: Olena – she leads the Shevchenko Charitable Foundation and is involved in business projects (like the ARMANI clothing store in Kyiv).
  • Parents: father – Mykola, mother – Lyubov.

Andriy Shevchenko Hobby

Hobby, books, and social networks

Golf. Milan’s partner Oliver Birkhoff introduced the game. Last October, he completed a special course at St. Andrews in Scotland, where he studied under the famous Vijay Singh. A long flight of the ball after hitting Sheva without wind – 320 yards (× 0.91 m), behind the wind – 420 yards. Plays with Vialli, del Piero, Massaro, Tassotti. In general, quite a serious and aristocratic hobby. And funny – once in Barbados, the game was interrupted by a monkey who stole the ball.

A new hobby is backgammon. As for books, Enzo Catania’s book “The Devil from the East” is dedicated to Andriy Shevchenko. Andriy claims that it has nothing to do with its preparation. Andriy Shevchenko co-authored with journalist Alessandro Alchato his autobiographical book Forza gentile. La mia vita, il mio calcio “(” Silent force. My life, my football”). Published on April 29, 2021, in Italian.

Social networks:

  • Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/andriyshevchenko/
  • Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/shevaofficial
  • Twitter – https://twitter.com/jksheva7

After Russia attacked Ukraine on February 24, Shevchenko became one of the most active Ukrainian sportsmen who accused Putin of inhuman actions. Do you want more interesting publications about football? Subscribe to India Football Blog updates and get the latest posts straight to your email.

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