On Wednesday, Ukraine will meet Scotland to take a step on the road to the World Cup in Qatar this autumn. The match was supposed to be played in March, but was postponed due to the war in Ukraine. It is Ukraine’s first competitive match since the away win over Bosnia in November last year. Since February, the war has made football impossible. The war is in full swing, more tragic and destructive than ever. Paradoxically, therefore, national team football is also more important than ever for the war-torn people. The players are reminded of it all the time, and they know what it means for soldiers and civilians in their homeland. – Our soldiers write to us regularly and urgently ask for one thing: That we manage to get to the World Cup, says midfielder Taras Stepanenko to Sky Sports. EMOTIONAL: Taras Stepanenko’s hometown has been wiped out by the war. Now he hopes to be able to give the soldiers a little back by helping Ukraine to the World Cup Photo: JURE MAKOVEC / AFP He was born and raised in the village of Velyka Novoselytsia in the Donbass region, eastern Ukraine. The village is totally destroyed in the acts of war. He hopes to be able to pay back some of what he thinks he owes to the soldiers who are fighting in his home area, by getting to the World Cup. It had been an enormous encouragement to the people of the war-torn country. Stepanenko is one of those who until the war played in the home league. The man with 64 international caps has played for Shakhtar Donetsk most of his career. HOME CITY: In war-torn Kherson, Ukraine’s midfielder Taras Stepanenko has grown up. Now he is not allowed to send help there Photo: SERGEY BOBOK / AFP The club is based in Donbas, where it has had our war for many years, a war that was sharply escalated during the Russian invasion in February. Can not send help to war-torn hometown – This is a greeting to those who defend the nation Ukraine, says Oleksandr Karavajev, another player Sky Sports has spoken with. Karavajev has to interrupt the interview with Sky Sports in tears. He is originally from the city of Kherson, a large city that was occupied by Russian forces immediately after the invasion. He always traveled to his hometown on vacation. Now he is not allowed to send medicine and other help to relatives in his hometown. – The least we can do for our soldiers Also Real Madrid’s goalkeeper Andrij Lunin emphasizes how important the match is for everyone connected to Ukraine. MOTIVATED: – The least we can do for our soldiers is to give them a positive experience, says goalkeeper Andrij Lunin Photo: Manu Fernandez / AP – The soldiers who fight for Ukraine inspire the whole world. We will go out and do our job of giving them a positive experience back. That is the least we can do for them, and we will give everything, says Lunin to Ukraine’s own football association. It is against this background that Ukraine is competing for the World Cup at Hampden Park in Glasgow – with minimal combat training and preparation, but with a motivation that surpasses most. Since becoming an independent nation in the 1990s, Ukraine has been a good football nation. Last year, they reached the quarterfinals of the European Championships. VERY GOOD: Here Ukraine meets Borussia Mönchengladbach for a match both for income for Ukrainian refugees and for match training for the national team Photo: THILO SCHMUELGEN / Reuters Lacks match training They have many players in big clubs in big leagues. Nevertheless, many in the squad come from clubs in their home country. There, the league and all club football were stopped when the invasion came, and many have therefore not played matches for a long time. – It is good for Ukraine to be able to show that they are not only victims of war, but can also deliver good football, or make good music like when they won Eurovision. At least it created great enthusiasm and heels in the ceiling, says Jørn Holm-Hansen to NRK. He is a researcher at Oslo Met, specializing in Ukrainian society. He also believes that the solidarity with Ukraine is so great that there will probably be many in the stands who will cheer on them. – It is important for them to see that so many show support and enthusiasm for the country, says Holm-Hansen. – Ukraine is still alive Ukraine’s law that men between 18 and 60 years are not allowed to leave the country, makes an exception for football players. It tells how much the national team means to Ukraine in this wartime. – It is completely unnecessary to talk about motivation, Manchester City star Oleksandr Zintchenko states. It also tells the story of national team manager Oleksandr Petrakov. When Russia invaded, the 64-year-old wanted to help defend the country from day 1, and showed up at the recruiting office. He was rejected with this basic premise: – We will take care of this. It is much better that you hire our national team for the World Cup. Souness cheers on Ukraine For the home team Scotland, there will be a match against more than Ukrainian players on the field. They know that the sympathy with Ukraine is great, and will crawl far into the stands at the giant Hampden Park. SUPPORTS UKRAINE: Former Scottish national team captain Graeme Souness hopes Ukraine wins. He will comment on the match for Sky Sports Photo: SCOTT HEPPELL / AP Knowing that it will affect British teams. Because if Ukraine beats Scotland on Wednesday, they must beat Wales on Sunday to secure the World Cup ticket. And there they will come in groups with England. – I hope Ukraine wins and goes to the World Cup, says Graeme Souness to The National. It is sensational, because Souness is a former captain of the Scottish national team. He admits it is difficult. – I say to myself that this is just football, and do we really want to beat them? Whether it is sports, art or politics, we must send a very strong message to Russia that what they are doing cannot be accepted.
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Ukrainian soldiers write to players before emotional comeback – NRK Sport – Sports news, results and broadcast schedule
