The former captain of the Russian national team defies Putin, and confirms: The invasion of Ukraine is a disaster
The former captain of the Russian national football team, Igor Denisov, criticized his country's invasion of Ukraine, describing what is happening as a "horror" and a "disaster", becoming one of the few athletes of his country who dares to take a stand against the policies and decisions of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“For me, it was not shock but horror” and a “disaster,” Denisov said in an interview posted on YouTube, describing his reaction when he learned of the start of the Russian military operation against Ukraine.
He continued, "I don't know, maybe my words will put me in prison or they will kill me, but I want to list the facts," stressing that he "loves my country" and has no intention of leaving Russia.
Since the beginning of the attack on Ukraine, Russia has been trying to suppress the mouths of opposition to the war in an unprecedented way, as the authorities passed a law providing for imprisonment for up to 15 years in case of publishing any information about the military that the authorities consider false, including the simple fact of using the words " war” or “invasion” to describe the intervention in Ukraine.
"I want everything to be good and peaceful here," added the former Zenit St Petersburg midfielder, noting that he could not sleep on the first nights after the start of the Russian attack because he was "under shock".
The 38-year-old former international revealed that he wrote a letter to President Vladimir Putin appealing to him to stop the military operation in Ukraine, explaining, "I wrote to him: I am ready to kneel before you."
Denisov spent the greater part of his career at Zenit St. Petersburg and Lokomotiv Moscow, where he played until 2019. He also defended his country's national team colors 54 times, and took the captaincy several times.
In January 2021, Denisov expressed his sympathy with the opponent of the regime, Alexei Navalny, when the latter was arrested upon his return to Russia after several months abroad.
Since the invasion began, few Russian athletes have spoken out against intervention in Ukraine, especially among those living in Russia.
On the first day of the operation, international striker and Dynamo Kyiv player Fedor Smolov, 32, posted a message on Instagram expressing his opposition to the war waged by his country against its neighbour.
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