Between 2012 and 2016 Igor Denisov was the captain of the Russian national football team. The former midfielder has now retired and has openly opposed Russia’s aggressive war in Ukraine.
in the Interview with sports journalist and blogger Nobel Arustamyan Denisov made his position clear.
“I don’t know, maybe I’ll be jailed or killed for saying those words, but I’ll say it like it is. My perception of everything has changed drastically. I wasn’t sleeping. I probably slept three hours for four days. I was just shocked,” quotes the “Bavarian radio” the ex-pro.
Denisov called the war a “disaster.” “No one can explain it to me, maybe because I’m not well-read, maybe because I’m not well versed in history, but I’m against it, I don’t like it when people die, I can’t keep quiet about it anymore,” he said 38-year-old clearly.
“I can’t help but speak up”
Shortly after the start of the war on February 24, 2022, Denisov said he wanted to upload a statement to YouTube. In this video he addressed the ruler Vladimir Putin directly. But his friends ultimately advised him not to publish it, says Denisov.
Because of the tightened laws in Russia, he’s “afraid even now.” “But I can’t help but speak up. Again, I’m not hiding, I’m not going anywhere — I don’t need to. How can anyone deny that I feel that way? You know, maybe I’m speaking for someone , who thinks differently, nonsense, but for myself – I think I should put it that way,” said Denisov, who has played for Zenit St. Petersburg, Dynamo Moscow and Lokomotiv Moscow, among others, in his playing career.