In Act of Defiance, Ukraine Football Season Kicks Off Amid Threat of Russian Attacks

As an act of defiance, as defined by the president of the national federation, the Ukrainian Championship will resume this Tuesday (23). It’s National Flag Day in the country. For the players who will be present in the first round, there is more than one pride. There is also fear as well as hope.

“It’s an act of faith, that football can be bigger than war. It’s a demonstration of the courage of our people”, says Andriy Pavelko, who heads the local federation.

He was one of the forces that carried out the project to resume the championship in the midst of the invasion of the country by Russian forces. The start of the war brought the league to a halt in April this year. The title was declared vacant.

The green light for the restart was given by the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky. The initial thought would be to convey the image that life continues within the normal range. It will not be easy.

“I see it as an opportunity. It’s the chance to be in Europe and defend one of Ukraine’s top teams. We’re in a region that’s not close to where the battles take place. But if there’s any problem, I’m four kilometers away from border with Slovakia”, says Brazilian striker Marlyson, 24, on loan from Figueirense to Vorskla Poltava.

The team will face Zorya, away from home, this Tuesday. But even the table, place of games and times are open, recognizes Pavelko. Changes can occur at the last minute.

Marlyson was playing for Metalist when the war broke out. He left the country by train, an 18-hour journey, as soon as the league was interrupted. Now he’s back because of the financial offer, a contract he wouldn’t receive in Brazil.

There are two more Brazilians in the squad: Gabriel Nazário and Felipe, who were also in Ukraine before and decided to return also for the financial advantage. An opportunity that others had, but turned down.

“I heard about the return of the championship. I have a contract with Kolos Kovalivka, who is from Ukraine, but in the situation they are living there, I would not return. The current condition is very complicated. We follow the news. over there”, says Brazilian striker Renan Oliveira, who left the country at the beginning of the war and is now at Zalgiris Vilnius, in Lithuania.

According to the websites of the 16 teams that will compete in the first division, there will be nine Brazilian players. With the beginning of the conflict, foreign athletes received a license from FIFA to play for other teams or be loaned, in the case of Renan Oliveira.

This was not welcomed by all clubs. The richest in the country, Shakhtar Donetsk, is asking for 50 million euros (about R$259 million at the current price) from FIFA and Uefa in reparations for the loss of athletes and has taken the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Most matches will be held in the capital Kiev region. All teams moved to locations close to the city or neighboring the borders considered safer. There will be no public in the stands, and the army will be deployed to ensure the safety of the players, the federation says.

“It is a sign to society that we are confident and also to increase the morale of the country. We consider it a big step”, says Pavelko.

The league will be far from what it was before the war, and the leaders themselves know that. Teams like Kryvbas Kryyyi Rih found it difficult to assemble a full squad and appealed to young people in the region. But this club, based in Zelensky’s homeland, was the most staunch opponent of the idea of ​​having local championship matches held in Poland. The argument is that the Ukrainian league has to take place in Ukraine.

Among the participants when the war was interrupted, Desna Chernihiv and Mariupol will be out. Its stadiums and infrastructure were bombed by the Russian air force.

Unlike the Russians, Ukrainian teams are allowed to participate in European competitions. Shakhtar Donetsk was one of the defenders of matches in Poland because they will send their matches in the qualifying phase of the Champions League in Warsaw. Dynamo Kiev will use the city of Lodz, in the same country.

The question no one wants to think about is what will happen if the situation gets worse outside Kiev. Or that there are air strikes. Continuing the tournament in this situation would be unthinkable. For many, starting over in the current situation is already a considerable risk.

“The important thing is to send a signal to the people that the Ukrainian people are resisting. Football is capable of sending that message,” says Croatian defender Dragan Lovric of Kryvbas.

The message Marlyson had to pass on to her family was another one: that it was a good idea to return to Ukraine. For now, she managed to convince them.

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