Benfica’s Roman Yaremchuk shows shirt of support for Ukraine in Champions League
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.
What a game it has been at the Estadio da Luz!
Ukraine international Roman Yaremchuk scores the equalizer for Benfica and removes his shirt to display his nation's coat of arms amid Russian escalation in his homeland
(via @TUDNUSA) pic.twitter.com/iszkazsMTP
— Planet Fútbol (@si_soccer) February 23, 2022
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.”
Roman Yaremchuk 🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦
He just HAD to score tonight!
What a celebration too!
Exceeding many Ukrainian expectations
ACTIONS speak louder than words 💪🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/Sp12eiYbAe
— Zorya Londonsk (@ZoryaLondonsk) February 23, 2022
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.