Brazilians who play in Ukraine see normality, but risk of war worries

Renan Oliveira, 24, has already got it into his head. At the sign of any more serious problems, he will drop everything and leave Ukraine. The striker is one of 30 Brazilians who are spread across 16 teams in the country’s first division.

At risk of invasion from Russia, Ukrainians have been experiencing a diplomatic crisis with the neighboring nation since the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

“We try to stay in control as much as possible. I told my parents that, for now, everything is fine. People at the club are calm. But the first thing that pops, I’m leaving”, said the player who plays for Kolos. Kovalivka.

The speech of the leaders is the same for other Brazilians heard by the sheet. There is no reason to panic, life should be carried on as normal. And they find that this has happened. Despite the harsh winter, the population has tried to ignore the possibility of armed conflict.

“Everyone asks me how I’m doing here. Some even joke and want to know if I’m going to war. I came to Ukraine because it’s European football. I already knew there was a problem, but at no time did the possibility of something cross my mind. more serious,” says attacking midfielder Talles, 23, who is at Rukh Lviv.

In his memory is an interview with striker Bernard, now in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, saying that he could not leave his house (at the time of the annexation of Crimea) because it was possible to hear the sounds of gunfire. He was then playing for Shakhtar Donetsk, who had to move to Kiev because of the conflict.

Of the 30 Brazilian athletes in the Ukrainian elite, 12 are on the Donetsk team.

Ukraine has been something of an Eldorado for national players for the past 15 years. Clubs are recognized for paying excellent salaries, much higher than the average in Brazil, and on time. They can also serve as a gateway to more relevant leagues on the continent. This is what happened, for example, with Fernandinho (Manchester City) and Fred (Manchester United).

“To tell the truth, it’s only now that I think about it because I arrived training and playing. I didn’t even have time to adapt to life in Ukraine”, completes Talles, who transferred to Rukh Lviv in January of last year. At the beginning of 2022, to escape the height of winter, he was with his teammates in pre-season in Turkey.

This is common for country teams. Snow and low temperatures mean that the championship is interrupted at the end of each year. It will resume next Friday (25).

Shakhtar Donetsk told its athletes the same as everyone else. The team has been monitoring the political situation and said Brazilians will be warned of any worsening weather. In 2014, the club had an emergency scheme to remove athletes from Donetsk.

“When I arrived in the country, in 2019, there was already talk of invasion. The comment from all over the world was about the conflict on the border. In fact, when I found out that I was coming here, I knew very little about the history. I only knew that many Brazilians played here. I did some research to find out what could happen”, says Renan Oliveira.

The speech of the leaders is that there could be an agreement brokered by NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), so that European countries would have easy access to enter Ukraine and defend the region.

After an apparent retreat of Russian troops on the border, the situation became more tense last Thursday (17). Vladimir Putin’s government expelled the US Deputy Ambassador and threatens to react to Western interference. US President Joe Biden mentioned the possibility of war.

“What scared the people living in Ukraine the most were the embassies asking their citizens to leave the country. This worried. But both the president of our club and the government say that it is a controlled situation and it will not affect football. “, concludes Renan Oliveira.

But if it gets worse, he already knows what he’s going to do.