Georgi Sudakov: "I thought I wouldn't be able to play anymore, that I would become a truck driver or work at a car wash"

Shakhtar midfielder Georgiy Sudakov said what he was thinking about in the first days of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"In 2022, Russia took away my dream of soccer. Those are the scariest days of my life. I thought I wouldn't be able to play anymore, that I would become a truck driver or work at a car wash. But after a while we went on tour and started playing our first charity matches and I was happy that I could continue doing what I love.

We can't play home matches in Ukraine now, it's tiring because we have to travel - it takes several days. But this is nothing compared to what our military men are going through. Now there are many Ukrainians abroad, we feel their support.

Yes, at first the whole world mobilized and helped Ukraine, but lately it seems to me more and more that we are alone with the enemy. We are taking back our land with the lives of our best people. It is a daily struggle for our existence. Today we have missiles flying over our heads, but perhaps tomorrow other European countries will also have to defend themselves against russia," Sudakov said in an interview with the Italian portal Salciomercato.com.