Ukrainian Premier League club, Shakhtar Donetsk confirmed that one of the club’s children’s coaches had been killed by Russian forces in Ukraine.
The Chief Executive Officer of the club, Serhyi Palkin confirmed in a statement that the children’s coach died after a fragment of Russia’s bullet got into him.
Recall that since February 24, 2022, the president of Russia ordered Russia’s troops to invade Ukraine in an attempt to make Ukraine a part of Russia.
Since the invasion started, most of Ukraine’s cities have been under attack and most Ukrainians and foreigners in the country have been looking for means to leave the country to safer territory.
While some people have succeeded in leaving the country, some Ukrainians have decided to stay back to defend the sovereignty of the country.
The Shakhtar Donetsk’s youth coach whose name was not mentioned was one of the series of people that decided to stay back and fight for Ukraine. Unfortunately for him, he had to pay the ultimate price.
A statement from Serhyi Palkin read: “One of our employees was killed, he was a children’s coach. He was hit by a fragment of a Russian bullet.”
Before the death of Shakhtar Donetsk children’s coach, reports from Ukraine confirmed that two footballers from the war-torn country have lost their lives.
One of the footballers was Vitaliy Sapylo who was a goalkeeper at third-division side Karpaty Lviv’s youth team. After the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces, the 21-year-old goalkeeper decided to join the Ukrainian army as a tank commander.
Sapylo was reported missing last week Friday and was confirmed dead earlier this week.
The second footballer that was confirmed death was Dmytro Martynenko. The 25-year-old late footballer last played for second-division side FC Gostomel. He and his mother died after Russian bombs hit his home in the country’s capital, Kyiv.
A statement from FIFPRO read: “Our thoughts are with the families, friends and team-mates of young Ukrainian footballers Vitalii Sapylo and Dmytro Martynenko, football’s first reported losses in this war. May they both rest in peace.”
📍 Mariupol
— FC SHAKHTAR ENGLISH (@FCShakhtar_eng) March 4, 2022
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Shakhtar Donetsk coach Roberto De Zerbi is still alive
When the report came out that a Shakhtar Donetsk coach was killed in the war, many assumed that it was the club’s senior coach Roberto De Zerbi.
The Italian coach spent the first 24 hours of Russia’s invasion in a hotel room in Ukraine. Though the 42-year-old Italian coach initially said he was willing to stay back in Ukraine in support of the country, he succeeded in leaving the country back to Italy on the second day of the invasion.
In his first interview after leaving Ukraine, coach Roberto De Zerbi revealed that he spent 24 hours hiding in the basement of a hotel before he was able to escape.
“[My time in the Kyiv attack] lasted 24 hours, but they passed very very slowly because you didn’t sleep, at night you could hear everything,” De Zerbi told Radio 105.
“There were those who slept in the bunker [of the hotel] and those in the rooms. I slept in the room to understand what was happening outside the hotel when I heard a roar would go into the bunker. Then I would go back to my room after a few hours.
“We are back at home thanks to the commitment of the UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin who showed great humanity, incredible sensitivity, he organized everything down to the smallest detail and even the embassy treated us well.”
