REBROV: SPURS TRIED TO SIGN SHEVCHENKO

Rumours had been rife over the last few months that Spurs were looking into the possibility of reforming the former Dinamo Kiev strike-force - which was so potent in the late nineties, and now Rebrov has revealed that talks did take place.

"The chairman of Tottenham was really ready to pay around £30 million for Andrei Shevchenko," said Rebrov.

"But [Silvio] Berlusconi and [Adriano] Galliani asked Shevchenko his opinion on the move and he told them that he wanted to stay at Milan and extend his contract - which he did.

"It is not difficult to understand for him, he is playing with one of the best Italian clubs and will not change for an English club, which couldn`t even sneak into the Uefa Cup."

However, Rebrov did give Spurs fans hope for the future, by stating that if the club reached the Champions League, then Shevchenko would have no qualms about moving.

"It Tottenham reached the Champions League in a year, there would be grounds to return to the issue, especially as Andrei would not mind playing alongside me again."

The Spurs striker also spoke about the Ukraine`s chances of qualifying for the World Cup.

Ukraine are in a similar predicament to England in that they look as if they will need to go through the Play-offs. Group Five leaders Poland have nearly secured top-spot and Ukraine are looking to beat Belarus to second place, and if they do Rebrov says he would not mind if they faced England in the knock-out situation.

"It is too early to think about it, but certainly the weaker the team, the better for us. But honestly, I would not mind to getting England." stated Rebrov.