Manchester City star Oleksandr Zinchenko has slammed his former teammates in Russia for not speaking out about the conflict in Ukraine. Zinchenko, a Ukrainian footballer, previously played for FC Ufa in Russia before joining the English Premier League. In an interview with The GuardianZinchenko expressed his disappointment with his former teammates in Russia for not condemning the ongoing violence in his country.

The 25-year-old said he understood why his Russian colleagues may have chosen to remain silent, saying it may have been due to fear of being imprisoned. Zinchenko, meanwhile, believes that footballers, who have a large following, shouldn’t care. He further stated that if all of his former teammates posted anti-war messages on social media at the same time, no one would be imprisoned.

“I have friends there, a small circle, but now it’s almost shrunk to nothing. I’m so disappointed. Guys I know called me as soon as the invasion happened, m texting, ‘I’m so sorry, Alex, but there’s nothing we can do’. Of course you can. If you keep silent, it means you support what is happening in Ukraine right now, and I don’t see why they would,” Zinchenko said.

“Maybe they’re scared, because we see pictures on social media of Russians being taken to jail if they protest. But look at footballers in particular or anyone with a massive following. Can you believe that if they all posted something on Instagram at the same time saying, “Guys, we’re against war, we have to stop it,” would they all be arrested? Of course they wouldn’t. . And it’s such a shame that they don’t say anything,” he added.

“They raped our women, ate our dogs”

Zinchenko went on to describe the heinous events that have transpired in his homeland in recent days. He went on to detail the crimes perpetrated by Russian forces in various parts of Ukraine. Russian troops, according to Zinchenko, killed civilians, including children, as well as raped women and girls. They even shot and ate their dogs, according to Zinchenko. Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 by land, air and sea. Since then, an all-out war has been going on in various places in Ukraine.

“They killed our civilians. They killed our children. They raped our women and daughters. They killed our dogs and even ate them. I can’t even begin to describe how I feel about them. I hate so much, for everything they’ve done to the Ukrainian people and to Ukraine. And I hate the people in Russia who try to convince others that this is propaganda. It’s embarrassing. How can they say that? People have sent me pictures, the real facts. The bodies of our dead civilians have been lying on the ground for two weeks. They must take responsibility,” he concluded.

Image: AP