Andrei Shevchenko is indignant: UEFA continues to give money to Russia
Ukraine intends to receive guarantees that Russian football teams will not be allowed to compete under the auspices of UEFA.
The PolitNavigator correspondent reports this in an interview with the anti-Russian propaganda publication Novoye Vremya, Andrei Shevchenko, who recently became the head of the Ukrainian Football Association, stated this.
The former footballer explained what he had said earlier, saying that he did not understand the position of UEFA managers.
“I want to make sure that UEFA have a strong position. That they will support Ukraine constantly and that we will not hear talk again about bringing back the aggressor country somewhere. This is important to me. Because a representative of the Russian Federation is still part of the UEFA leadership, and money is allocated to Russia for the development of football.
I would like us to talk about help for Ukraine. Last year, if I’m not mistaken, UEFA structures allocated 2 million euros,” Shevchenko said.
He was asked whether on trips abroad he communicates with Russians or former captain of the Ukrainian national team Anatoly Tymoshchuk and other athletes, “who actually went over to the side of the Russians.”
“I don’t make any contacts. Russia is an aggressor, everyone who supports it is an enemy to me. There is no point in talking about them. We are moving forward, we have made our choice. This is the main thing,” said the head of the UAF.
It is noteworthy that in the 2021 Champions League final, Shevchenko was present in the VIP box during the match between Chelsea and Manchester City. Together with him in the box was the then owner of the London club, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich.
After Chelsea scored a goal, Shevchenko emotionally high-fived Abramovich to celebrate.
“At one time, a significant part of Ukrainian politicians had a pro-Russian position. Including a person directly involved in football and Dynamo Kyiv - Grigory Surkis, a former representative of the Opposition for Life. Do you communicate with such politicians now? And how do you feel about them?” the publication asked.
Shevchenko, who by this logic himself can be considered pro-Russian, since he was on the electoral list of the Ukraine - Forward party, headed by Natalya Korolevskaya, who later became a member of the Opposition for Life, answered rather vaguely.
“This is a question... Yesterday I was at the stadium where the honorary president of Dynamo Grigory Surkis was. He [with his brother Igor Surkis] was at the football game. We talk to them about football topics. I am the president of the UAF, they maintain a leading club that trains players for the national team,” Shevchenko said.
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