Arsenal star Oleksandr Zinchenko shared his thoughts about the Russian invasion of his homeland, Ukraine. Furthermore, the player also shared how this whole ordeal took a toll on him and his country.
Oleksandr Zinchenko sat down with Piers Morgan for an interview and talked about how he used his platform to help ease the pain of his countrymen.
Zinchenko, however, expressed his disappointment in the Russian athletes, who never once stood up for his country or spoke against the invasion. The player shared, “I had the chat with one of the… not one of the… I would say the famous one Russian sportsman at the moment, not from football. I’m not gonna say his name but he is very famous.
“I had a chat with him on Instagram because I followed him on Instagram, and he asked why did you do that? I said listen, it’s already three months since the invasion and you didn’t even say anything. You have millions of followers; you didn’t post even one picture to stop these things.
“I would never understand this because if this were Ukraine and Ukraine invaded anyone else, I swear to God, I will be the first one who’s gonna scream like to stop it, and I would never come back.”
Many fans believe that the Arsenal star took a dig at the former UFC player Khabib. One fan commented, “Zinchenko definitely took aim at Khabib in that interview.” While another fan commented, “Crybaby Zinchenko vs Khabib. Loser has their country banned in all sports. Who says no?”
Zinchenko saying he messaged Khabib on IG to show support of Ukraine and advocate for ending the Russian invasion, And he left him on read 😭 pic.twitter.com/R6kubb7REC
— Salamander (@VapEnjoyer) June 14, 2023
Even though the player refused to take any names, the fans seem convinced that he is indeed talking about the UFC player with the hints he has given by saying “Russian sportsman at the moment, not from football” with “millions of followers”.
Oleksandr Zinchenko wants Russian and Belarusian sportsmen to be banned from top-level sports
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had a huge impact on sports last year. Russia was even banned from the World Cup, while 30 Olympic countries wrote to the IOC over Russia’s participation in the games.
While many sports banned Russians from participation, some individual sports, like the ATP and WTA tours, allowed Russian players to participate. Wimbledon banned the Russian athletes; however, they later altered their decision and allowed them to play.
🗣️ Oleksandr Zinchenko has called for all Russian and Belarusian athletes to be BANNED from all international sports competitions. 🇺🇦❌🇷🇺🇧🇾
“There is no chance that I will shake hands with a Russian anymore. I have to be honest, I will never accept their reaction. You can tell… pic.twitter.com/i9P84qRTXF
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) June 14, 2023
Oleksandr Zinchenko does not agree with his decision though. The player shared, “I don’t agree. I am one of the Ukrainians who doesn’t like to see them in the highest level of any sport. For sure they should be banned. 100% they shouldn’t be allowed. Why? Because how many bombs and rockets are being sent from Belarus? How many?”
He further stated that he would not shake hands with any sportsman from those countries. Furthermore, the player revealed that he would fight for his country if the need arises in the future.