Shevchenko claims Premier League teams have agreed to accept Ukrainian children into academies

The Premier League has stepped-up its aid of Ukraine with plans to welcome fleeing refugee children into their academies, according to Andriy Shevchenko. 

Since Russia began their murderous invasion more than 1.3 million civilians have fled, mostly into Poland and Romania. They were forced to leave everything behind, with many abandoning their cars part-way and trekking hour upon hour to leave the war zone.

The English top-flight are staging a show of solidarity with Ukraine this weekend, with the slogan ‘Football Stands Together’ splashed across grounds and a minute of applause held before kick-off. 

Now the nation’s all-time greatest footballer has revealed he’s at the heart of plans to ensure Ukrainian children can continue playing the game. 

‘In the UK, all football clubs have responded to the situation in Ukraine,’ Shevchenko told Ukrainian TV channel 1+1, as reported by Zorya Londonsk.

‘They are ready to accept Ukrainian children to train in the academies of Premier League clubs.

‘Now a series of negotiations will be held to formalise the documents. We need to get permission. We’ll try to get this done very quickly. I’m in touch with the football federation. Sports camps will open.

‘Everything must be done so that children who leave the cities of Ukraine can train either on the territory of Western Ukraine, or it will already be on the territory of other countries.’ 

More than a million people have fled from Ukraine since the Russian invasion first began 

English teams are helping-out in Ukraine in their own way too, with Leicester teaming-up with the British and Ukrainian Red Cross to send supplies to civilians stuck in Kyiv. 

Shevchenko has been vocal in trying to stop the war, with a video message from the former striker played at the San Siro before the Milan derby, as he called for peace.   

‘I want to thank my nation, army, president Volodymyr Zelensky (for doing) everything possible to defend my country from Russian aggression. I’m so proud to be Ukrainian,’ Shevchenko told Sky. 

‘It’s a very difficult moment for my country, for my people, for my family. My mum and my sister are in Kyiv at this moment and there are terrible things happening there.

The Premier League are staging a show of solidarity this weekend with the Ukrainian people 

‘It’s people dying, children dying, missiles pointing in our houses, and we need to stop this war, we need to find a way to stop the war.’  

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky warned on Sunday that Russian forces are preparing to shell Odessa – a historic port city on the Black Sea coast.

Russian forces have made progress in southern Ukraine since its invasion 11 days ago, overrunning the city of Kherson and shelling the port of Mariupol, but Odessa has so far been largely spared.