“A dreadful little berk,” Piers Morgan defends Oleksandr Zinchenko from critics after controversial interview about Russia-Ukraine conflict
TV presenter came to the player's defense after social media users criticized him over comments made in his interview.
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Zinchenko with Piers Morgan (Credit- Piers Morgan)
British TV presenter Piers Morgan came into Oleksandr Zinchenko’s defense after the Arsenal left back’s comments in his interview came under fire. He had made the claim that they should ban all Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating in all top-tier sports.
After Russia invaded Ukraine earlier last year, FIFA imposed a ban on Russia’s participation in any competitions. However, they have allowed Russian players to continue participating in club competitions.
After Morgan said that Wimbledon has decided to let the Russian and Belarusian players take part in the competition, the former Manchester City player said, “I don’t agree.” He went on to shoot “I am one of the Ukrainians who doesn’t like to see them in the highest level of any sport. For sure they should be banned. 100% they shouldn’t be allowed.”
Many individuals were not happy with this comment as many Twitter users expressed their disdain about it. One of them called Zinchenko, “Genuinely one of the most dislikable figures in football.” Morgan then came into the player’s defense and replied to the tweet criticizing the user. The 58-year-old TV presenter said, “Actually, he’s one of the most likable and impressive footballers I’ve met. You, however, seem a dreadful little berk.”
This is not the first time that the controversial presenter came into one of his guest’s defense. He has repeatedly defended Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo after his explosive interview with him in November last year.
Oleksandr Zinchenko on the reaction of the Russian players
Morgan asked Zinchenko about being cordial with the Russian players, some of whom were his former teammates when he played for Shakhtar Donetsk and FC Ufa. He asked him whether he would shake hands with them.
The Ukrainian questioned the athletes’ morals behind their silence saying, “They have millions of followers behind them and chances to speak out. If you have 10 million followers on Instagram saying ‘Stop It’, some people from that 10 million will spread it. And it will work in the end. But if no one is going to speak out because they’re scared, do not call us brothers. Never again.” It will be interesting to see how the various sporting bodies react to this interview and whether to take action against the Russian and Belarusian players.
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Arpan Ghosh
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