Success on the pitch a way to help fight Putin
Ukraine head coach Petrakov aims to raise the morale of those on the front line
Ukraine head coach Oleksandr Petrakov says he is too old to fight on the front line but is still trying to help his country in another way.
Football, he believes, can play its part in the effort to defeat Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Ukraine’s football federation is looking ahead to a time when the war will be over and the Russian invasion has been repelled.
And the federation has joined Spain and Portugal in their bid to host the 2030 World Cup.
Petrakov was in Frankfurt for the Euro 2024 qualifying draw but admitted he could not think what life would be like by the time the tournament kicks off in Germany.
Ending the war – rather than qualification – is his priority, but he still wants to use football to raise the morale of those fighting for Ukraine.
“We have a connection with the guys on the front line because they send messages to the players,” Petrakov said. “We feel they need our victory ... it is important for everybody to raise the spirits.”
Petrakov is 65 so was free to leave Ukraine after the Russian invasion in February. But he chose to remain in his homeland along with his family.
“I cannot be in the military because of my age and I don’t have any special skills, but still I stay in Ukraine,” he said. “We live our lives day by day. Any day you never know what could happen because the people who are against us could do anything. Every day many people die in our country, it is hard to say what it will be like in 2024.”
On the field, Ukraine have a difficult task qualifying for Germany after being drawn in the same group as Euro 2020 finalists Italy and England. North Macedonia and Malta are also in the group.
Ukraine, who missed out on the upcoming World Cup when they were defeated by Wales in the play-offs, will probably have to play their home games at a neutral venue because of the war. They have been playing in Poland since the invasion.
“My guys want to finish the war as soon as possible and play in front of our fans in Kyiv, Lviv, maybe Kharkiv.”