Zenit were the only Russian side playing in European competition on Thursday
Russian side Zenit St Petersburg are out of the Europa League after their last-gasp goal against Real Betis was denied by VAR on Thursday night.
Trailing 3-2 on aggregate from the first leg, Dmitri Chistyakov’s header in Seville looked to have sent the tie to extra time – only for an intervention by the video assistant to rule that Aleksandr Erokhin had committed a foul on Guido Rodriguez in the buildup.
It was the second time Zenit had seen a goal disallowed by VAR on the night with a first half Yuri Alberto effort struck off due to offside.
The VAR call potentially saved UEFA from finding themselves in a difficult position in relation to the intensifying Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Zenit St. Petersburg score in the last minute in Betis to make aggregate score 3-3 in Europa League game. Then ref goes to VAR screen, disallows it. Soft. Betis stay 3-2 up. Uefa breathe sigh of relief. Zenit on way out. pic.twitter.com/h9yefZxSiE
— tariq panja (@tariqpanja) February 24, 2022
All Ukrainian sides are out of European competition, whereas Zenit were the only Russian side to play on Thursday. Spartak Moscow, who have already qualified for the Europa League last-16, are the only team remaining from the country in European competition. UEFA have now confirmed they will have to play their home leg outside of Russia.
Had Zenit progressed, UEFA would have also needed to find a suitable neutral venue to host their ‘home’ leg. Russian forces had yet to launch their latest invasion of Ukraine at the time of the first leg with Betis in St Petersburg.
Yaroslav Rakitskiy, Zenit’s Ukrainian defender, had spoken out against the Russian invasion of his country prior to the second leg with Betis. The 32-year-old had posted a picture of his national flag to his Instagram with the caption “I’m Ukrainian” as the invasion began. He played no part in the game in Spain, where Ukrainian flags were seen in the crowd.
Zenit are largely owned by Gazprom, the Russian state-owned gas company that also sponsors the Champions League. Their stadium, the Gazprom Arena, had been scheduled to host this year’s Champions League final before UEFA confirmed they are seeking an alternative host for the showpiece game.
Related links:
- Zenit drop Ukrainian defender Yaroslav Rakitskiy for speaking out against Russian invasion
- Oleksandr Zinchenko attends protest against Russian invasion of Ukraine in Manchester
- Barcelona and Napoli players reveal banner reading ‘Stop war’ before Europa League fixture
