Benfica’s Ukrainian striker Roman Yaremchuk celebrated a Champions League goal on Wednesday by revealing a shirt bearing his country’s coat of arms as fears of a Russian invasion of his homeland grew.
The 26-year-old scored the goal that gave his team a 2-2 draw against Ajax and then displayed a black shirt displaying the blue and gold Tryzub symbol.
“I wanted to support my country. I thought a lot about it and I’m afraid of the situation,” he told CNN Portugal.
“The club supports me, they spoke to me and wanted to do everything to help me. I thanked them, although for the moment everything is fine.”
His action comes as tens of thousands of Russian troops are stationed near Ukraine’s borders, with the West saying they could be used for an attack at any moment and Kyiv imposing a national state of emergency.
