RB Leipzig coach Marco Rose is deeply concerned with the war in Ukraine and the fate of opponent Shakhtar Donetsk.
“Of course I noticed that the league game had to be interrupted at the weekend. And now we’re sitting here and we can only say how important peace is to us,” said the 46-year-old before the Champions League game, which had been moved to Warsaw because of the war, on Wednesday (6:45 p.m. live on sportschau.de).
“I have to take my hat off to the lads. They don’t just represent the club, they represent a whole country. Maybe it’s a signal that they keep going and try to make life as normal as possible. You’d like to do more, but of course it’s difficult for all of us who are so far away.”
Air alert during league game in Lviv
On Saturday, Shakhtar’s league game in Lviv against Oleksandriya (2-2) had to be interrupted due to an air raid alarm. It wasn’t the first time this had happened this season. In the Champions League, Donetsk plays its games in the Legia Warsaw stadium. The Ukrainian champions have yet to lose any of their home games away from home, drawing against Celtic Glasgow and Real Madrid.
“Unfortunately, Donetsk hasn’t played in their own stadium for a long time. I think they know this stadium here now, so maybe you can say that it’s become a kind of second home stadium for the Champions League,” said Leipzig midfielder Xaver Schlager. Around 20,000 spectators are expected for the game, with 600 fans traveling from Leipzig.