At least seven foreign players for
two top Ukrainian football teams have
refused to return to the country as
tensions mount after the Malaysia Airlines
crash, media reported Sunday.
Six players for champions Shakhtar
Donetsk players and an Argentine with
Metalist Kharkiv are too worried for their
safety, the reports said.
The six Donetsk players refused to fly back
to Ukraine after their side were beaten 4-1
by Lyon in a friendly Saturday in the
French town of Annecy, ITAR-TASS news
agency said.
It named five of the players as Brazilians
Alex Teixeira, Fred, Douglas Costa, Dentinho
and Argentine Facundo Ferreyra.
“I don’t want to give any comments for
the moment,” Shakhtar general manager
Sergei Palkin was quoted as saying by
Tribuna information site.
Meanwhile, Metalist Kharkiv’s Argentine
midfielder Sebastian Blanco refused to
return to Ukraine from a training camp in
Austria, the R-Sport agency reported.
“After the Malaysian plane’s crash I have
no intention to return to Ukraine,” the 26-
year-old footballer was quoted as saying.
“The situation there is currently abnormal. I
decided to stay in Buenos Aires.”
Ukrainian Football Federation (FFU) is
maintaining the start of the national
championship for July 25 despite the
troubles in the east of the country
heightened by the apparent shooting down
of the Malaysian Airlines jet on Thursday.
“The entire country mourns over the
tragedy that happened. It’s terrible,” an
FFU spokesman Pavel Ternovoi said. “But it
will not influence the national
championship kick off. We insist that
football should stay out of politics.
credit: www.vanguardngr.com/2014/07/foreign-players-abandon-ukraine-clubs-2/