Oleksandr Zinchenko: what did Man City player say on Instagram about Vladimir Putin, as Russia invades Ukraine

The Manchester City full-back Oleksandr Zinchenko has recently taken to Instagram to voice his opinion on the growing crisis in his home country, Ukraine.

Russia has recently launched what Ukraine is calling a ‘full-scale war’ and the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has said: “These are among the darkest hours for Europe since World War Two.”

Zinchenko, 25, was born in Ukraine but played a lot of his career at the Russian football club FC Ufa before signing with Manchester City in 2016.

Man City is one of four Premier League sides to be competing in the last 16 of the Champions League where the final is set to take place in St Petersburg, Russia.

UEFA are now planning to move the final elsewhere with the London Stadium and Wembley looking strong contenders.

What did Oleksandr Zinchenko say?

Zinchenko recently took to Instagram to respond to the ongoing crisis currently taking place in his home country.

He said: “The whole civilised world is worried about the situation in my country. I can’t stay back and strive to put my point across. In the photo - my country. The country where I was born and raised.

“A country whose colours I defend in the international sports arena. A country that we try to glorify glorify and develop. A country whose borders must remain inviolable.

“My country belongs to Ukrainians and no one will ever be able to appropriate it. We will not give up! Glory to Ukraine!”

Who is Oleksandr Zinchenko?

Zinchenko started his youth career with Youth Sportive School Karpatia before moving on to Monolit Illichivsk and Shakhtar Donetsk.

In 2015 the full-back signed with the Russian side Ufa and made 31 appearances in the Russian Premier League.

After joining City in 2016, the 25-year-old was sent on loan to the Dutch side PSV before becoming a permanent feature at City in 2018.

In recent years, Zinchenko has proved himself to be a vital cog in Pep Guardiola’s machine at Manchester City.

The Ukrainian is known for his versatility, slotting in at left-back as a cover for a few games before taking the spot full-time.

During his stint at City, the 25-year-old has won three Premier League titles, one FA Cup, four League Cups and played a crucial role in City’s first ever Champions League final in 2021.

The full-back looked at points as if he were to move on from the Etihad Stadium and join the likes of Wolves and Real Betis, but he has continued to work hard and retain his spot within the squad.

Zinchenko made his International debut in the UEFA Euro 2016 qualification match against Spain in 2015 and became the youngest player to score an international goal at the age of 19 years and 165 days during Ukraine’s 4-3 win over Romania in May 2016.

Zinchenko became Ukraine’s youngest player captain in their history in 2021 at the age of 24 years.

What’s happening in Ukraine?

Tensions between Russia and Ukraine have ramped up considerably in the past few months, with the current difficulties dating back to 2014 and the overthrow of the pro-Moscow Ukrainian government.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has been teetering on the edge of invasion because he views Ukraine as a part of Russia and wishes to have it under his control again amid his perceived fear of NATO’s European expansion.

On Thursday 24 February 2022, Ukraine said that Russia had ‘launched a full-scale invasion’ and Putin announced the action during a televised address saying that the move was in response to threats from Ukraine.

Putin also added that Russia does not have a goal to occupy Ukraine, but the responsibility for bloodshed lies with the Ukrainian ‘regime’. Go to our article on the live updates on Russia’s invasion to find out more.

Boris Johnson is set to make an address to the nation today on the Russian invasion and will address MPs this afternoon.

A message from the editor:

Thank you for reading. NationalWorld is a new national news brand, produced by a team of journalists, editors, video producers and designers who live and work across the UK. Find out more about who’s who in the team, and our editorial values. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going. You can also sign up to our newsletters and get a curated selection of our best reads to your inbox every day.