Former Ukrainian national team defender Artem Fedetsky told us what he thinks about the decision of clubs not to let some of their players join the Ukrainian Olympic team for the 2024 Olympics and, in particular, commented on the refusal of Portuguese Benfica to let their Ukrainian goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin go to the Games.
Artem Fedetsky"Trubin is now one of the best and most expensive goalkeepers in the world. It is probably important for Benfica to have him in the team and prepare for the championship. But the club's management should have been understanding about the Olympics and let Anatoly go.
The problem is that the Olympics are not held under the auspices of UEFA and are not scheduled so as not to overlap with European cups and championships. Clubs have the right to refuse to release players. They are preparing for the new season. Coaches believe that the Olympics will disrupt the training of the players who will be involved. So there are more questions than answers.
I don't envy Ruslan Petrovich [Rotan]. It was very difficult for him to find players. He probably had conversations with club presidents himself and made more than one call. Someone got into a position, someone didn't. I believe that all the clubs should have been understanding, because the Olympics is prestigious.
But I still believe that with the players Ruslan Petrovich called up, we must perform well at the Olympics," Fedetsky said.
