Maksym Feshchuk: "I have never had any problems in Crimea. I was never called a Banderite"

Former Tavriya player Maksym Feshchuk recalled the period of his career he spent in the Ukrainian Crimea.

- "For me, the move from Karpaty to Tavria was a step forward - like a breath of fresh air. I didn't think about anything, I enjoyed the game, the period there, the team, the way of life. The sea was close by, my family was happy, I had a good contract, a lot of exciting games. The same Cup, I scored in the final, opened the scoring. Or the home game with Dnipro, when I came on with the score 0-1 and made two effective actions in fact - a goal and an assist. And then they carry you in their arms. It was nice.

Believe me, I have never had any problems in Crimea. I was well received there, I'm honest. I have only positive, good and warm memories of the period I spent there. Although there were stories, as I have already told you, when I was talking to my wife on the phone in Ukrainian, and some old ladies sitting on the side said to me, "Where did you come from?"

But honestly, in all my five years in Crimea, I did not feel that I was being harassed or disliked anywhere. Everything was very friendly, absolutely no problems, both in terms of football and everyday life. I was not called a Banderite. I left Tavriya before the annexation, in the winter of 2013, so I didn't feel any mood beforehand that it could come to this. I had absolutely no idea. It was a shock for me when I heard what was happening. I couldn't believe it.

I'm very happy with my five years at Tavria. Man, those were great years in my career. The same cup, many games, great experience, working with many coaches. In general, everything was at a very high level," Feshchuk said.