Manchester City’s Ilkay Gundogan Reveals Direct Effect of Russian Invasion of Ukraine on his Family

March 27, 2022 admin MAN CITY 0

 

Ilkay Gundogan has revealed how he and his Manchester City teammates are supporting Oleksandr Zinchenko during the ongoing invasion of Ukraine from Russia, the Germany international admitted during a recent interview.

As a result of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, Oleksandr Zinchenko is understandably undergoing a tough personal period.

The Manchester City left-back recently revealed that he was ‘in shock’ after first encountering the vile scenes through pictures and videos shared via social media shown to him by his wife.

Before the start of Manchester City’s recent 1-0 win against Everton, the 25-year old was caught by TV cameras in tears after seeing both sets of supporters, as well as both teams, collectively showing their support towards Ukraine at Goodison Park.

Ilkay Gundogan, who is regarded as a senior figure within the Manchester City dressing room and was voted by the squad as vice-captain at the start of the 2021/22 season, was quizzed about how he is supporting Zinchenko during such testing times.

“It’s so hard to deal with. We try to support him,” Gundogan told Kicker.

Ilkay Gundogan also revealed that his family are being directly affected by the situation, as he continued, “My brother’s wife is also Ukrainian, so the war also affects my family directly. We spoke on the phone the other day, but I couldn’t find the words.”

“Any help is offered, but there is no template for how to properly deal with this terrible situation.”

The midfielder is right in implying that it is virtually impossible to imagine oneself in Oleksandr Zinchenko’s shoes, and as a result, all one can do is stand by Zinchenko’s side at this present moment.

The Ukrainian international has been unafraid to voice his opinion on Russia’s treatment of Ukraine, recently posting a picture of president Vladimir Putin with the caption, “I hope you die the most painful suffering death, creature” via Instagram.

The former Shakhtar Donestk man was also pictured joining hundreds of protesters at a vigil in St. Peter’s Square in Manchester city centre, to oppose the heinous crimes committed by the Russian leadership.

In such trying circumstances for Oleksandr Zinchenko, his Manchester City teammates such as Ilkay Gundogan must offer him all the support possible to ease the heartache caused by the current crisis.