Andriy Yarmolenko provided gifts to Ukrainian refugee children in his final act at London Stadium as a West Ham United player.
The 32-year-old, who will not have his contract renewed in East London, was filmed bringing bags containing presents to children at an entrance to the stadium following yesterday afternoon's 2-2 draw with Premier League leaders Manchester City.
Among the children was a six-year-old boy currently staying in the home of transport secretary Grant Shapps, who posted a message on Twitter thanking Yarmolenko for his gesture. "Thanks @Yarmolenko_7 - that was incredibly kind of you and he was super excited to meet you :-)," Shapps wrote. "@WestHam gained a new fan today!!!"
Yarmolenko was given a week of compassionate leave by West Ham at the beginning of Russia's attempted invasion of Ukraine in late February but returned to score the opening goal in a Premier League win over Aston Villa.
He broke down in tears when being surrounded by team-mates.
Yarmolenko then followed that up with the dramatic winner in the Europa League round of 16 game against Sevilla five days later.
He has also spoken about his relationship with former Ukraine team-mate Anatoliy Tymoshchuk has fallen apart since the invasion. The pair told each other to “f*** off” in a phone conversation after Tymoshchuk, an assistant coach at Zenit St Petersburg, was criticised for not speaking out against the war.
“I asked him how do you sleep at night,” Yarmolneko told Zorya Londonsk. “He replied ‘I don’t sleep.’ Then he called me. I told him you used to be a role model for me, now you’re nothing. Then he told me to ‘f*** off’ and I told him the same and that’s that.”
Yarmolenko, who joined West Ham in 2018 from Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth £17.5m, has been used sparingly throughout David Moyes’ second spell in charge. The 106-time Ukraine international has made 18 league appearances this season but only one came in the starting XI.
