"I ask you: open your hearts to my people, to the women, to the children, to the elderly who need your help so much... Make them feel what you have made me feel", launched, the tears in his eyes, the 45-year-old former player speaking from London on the program "Che Tempo Che Fa" of RAI, the Italian public channel.

Former Ukrainian striker Shevchenko, all-time top scorer, is one of AC Milan's legends for scoring more than 170 goals for the Serie A club, winning a league title and the League 2003 champions.

"My mother, my sister and other members of my family are still in Ukraine, I speak to them every day. It was their choice to stay", delivered "Sheva".

"I can't watch what is happening to my country without crying," he said.

"They tell me the truth about what is happening in Ukraine, bombed cities, children and old people killed."

"We must try to convince Russia to cease fire, to find a diplomatic solution and to stop this war."

Shevchenko, Ukraine coach from 2016-2021, appeared on the show to promote a fundraising initiative led by the Italian Red Cross as part of its humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.

© 2022 AFP