What an incredible gesture from Yarmolenko
West Ham United forward Andriy Yarmolenko has reportedly made a sizeable donation of £75,000 to Ukraine’s Armed Forces following Russia’s ongoing invasion of his home country.
The 32-year-old, who is his the third most-capped Ukrainian men’s player of all-time with 106 appearances, has provided some financial support to the Ukrainian army as they continue to fight to keep control of their homeland.
Yarmolenko was granted compassionate leave by West Ham on Sunday, which meant the attacker missed the Hammers’ win over Wolves.
However, his West Ham teammates warmed-up in shirts with his name on the back and Declan Rice carried his shirt out onto the pitch prior to kick-off.
Prior to kick-off, Declan Rice held up Andriy Yarmolenko’s shirt in a show of support for his Ukrainian teammate ❤️🇺🇦
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) February 27, 2022
During the game, Ukraine flags were held aloft in the stands – which could be seen at the majority of Premier League grounds around the league this weekend, as well as at Wembley for the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.
Yarmolenko’s donation was posted on Twitter by @ZoryaLondonsk, an account which posts Ukrainian football news in English.
The donation was for 3million Ukrainian hryvnia, which is equivalent to £74,540.
West Ham’s Andriy Yarmolenko has donated £75,000 to Ukraine’s Armed Forces 💪🇺🇦💙💛 pic.twitter.com/QGfd6IF68j
— Zorya Londonsk (@ZoryaLondonsk) February 28, 2022
The forward – who was born in Russia to Ukrainian parents, before moving back to his homeland when he was a child – played in Ukraine, most recently at Dynamo Kyiv, until 2017. He signed for Borussia Dortmund before making the move to the London Stadium in 2018.
Speaking before the Hammers’ clash with Wolves on Sunday, West Ham boss David Moyes said: “He’s [Yarmolenko] not in a very good position at the moment – we’ve given him a few days off.
“I spoke with him yesterday and he was upset, which you can imagine. We just hope his family keep safe.”
At the weekend, Ukrainian internationals Oleksandr Zinchenko and Vitaliy Mykolenko were both moved to tears ahead of Manchester City’s visit to Everton on Saturday.
City’s Zinchenko was seen seeking out the Everton full-back as the two teams warmed up before Saturday’s Premier League game at Goodison Park, the pair sharing an emotional embrace.
Related links:
- Zinchenko and Mykolenko in tears during moving Goodison show of support for Ukraine
- West Ham winger Andriy Yarmolenko calls out Ukrainian pundit for fight
- Ukrainian footballer vows to pause career to go to war against Russia
