Andriy Shevchenko has revealed that he was almost struck by a Russian missile while in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.
The former AC Milan striker was born 130km east of the capital, in a small village called Dvirkivshchyna. He made that long journey to the city when he was a child, where he would begin his illustrious professional career with Dynamo Kyiv.
Shevchenko returned to the city where it all began, he was there to have a meeting with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky.
While in the meeting a Russian missile landed just two kilometres away.
🗣️ “I was very close, about 2000 meters from a strike.”
Andriy Shevchenko tells his story about the time he was nearly hit by a missile during a visit back home to Ukraine. 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/JiVUriGJaS
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) December 16, 2022
“About 2km from the strike. One of the electric central generators (was hit) like we all know the Russians are trying to hit the critical infrastructure. The feeling (from the explosion) was very strong.” he told Sky Sports.
The 46-year-old stated that he expected something like this to happen and then praised the mindset of his people.
“When I move to the war zone I know this could happen.” he said.
“When the electricity comes back in some places, you call your friends and invite them to the house, take a shower, share some food. This is what the people do, just co-operate to try to help each other.
“The spirit is incredible, even in such a difficult situation. People collaborate. I think there is a strength in Ukraine, an unbreakable mind. We don’t have any choice.”
Shevchenko revealed that he was there, alongside boxer Oleksandr Usyk, to help raise funds for the Ukrainian people.