Ukraine stars Oleksandr Zinchenko and Andriy Yarmolenko have taken part in an emotional video urging the “football world” to help them stop the war.
Manchester City defender Zinchenko and West Ham star Yarmolenko were among the players to release the two minute clip pleading for peace.
They urged the whole of football to come together while the emotional video says they “oppose Russian propaganda” and says “missiles are bombing civilians and residential areas.”
The powerful message also thanks the sporting world for their sport and uses images of Poland star Robert Lewandowski who insisted publicly he would refuse to play Russia.
Then it also has clips of Wembley on Sunday with the Ukraine flags shown on the big screens as well as the scenes from Goodison Park when Zinchenko was in tears when both Everton and Manchester City fans were cheering their support.
It finishes with scenes from West Ham on Sunday and the support for Yarmolenko as the whole Ukraine national team insisted football can make a difference.
Zinchenko and Yarmolenko both read out messages in the emotionally charged video calling for peace and it comes in the wake of Russia being banned from the World Cup and the International Olympic Committee calling for every sporting body to kick them out.
Russia are understood to be ready to appeal their expulsion to the Court of Arbitration for Sport but they now find themselves ostracised by the sporting world.
The video said: “We appeal to the football community. To everyone who is united in the game of football, every fan, every player, every coach, every manager, everyone who understands and loves football.
“We love football
“We appeal to you
“To explain to the whole world and to show to every inhabitant on planet earth that under the cover of special operation Russian troops are waging an open war on Ukraine.
“They are bombarding residential areas with missiles and are bombing civilians.
“We call everyone who hears us to resist this war to stop the destruction and bloodshed.
“We ask all world football community to oppose Russian propaganda.
“To show the truth and tell the truth about this war in Ukraine by all possible resources. We thank everyone who has already done this and everyone who will support us.
“No to War.
“Glory To Ukraine
“Glory To the Heroes
#stop war
All the players in the video represent The national team of Ukraine. They are Andriy Pyatov, goalkeeper of Shakhtar, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Manchester City, Mykola Shaparenko, Dynamo Kyiv, Andriy Yarmolenko, West Ham, Taras Stepanenko, Shakhtar, Serhiy Sydorchuk, Dynamo Kyiv, Anatoliy Trubin, Shakhtar, Oleksiy Shevchenko, Shakhtar, Georgiy Bushchan, Dynamo Kyiv, Viktor Kovalenko, Spezia, Illia Zabarnyi, Dynamo Kyiv, Ruslan Malinovskyi, Atalanta, Sergiy Kryvtsov, Shakhtar.
