in Soccer

Man Utd and Cristiano Ronaldo along with Prem send defiant message pleading for peace after Russian invasion of Ukraine

99 Views


MANCHESTER UNITED and Watford joined before kick-off to send a defiant message pleading for peace in Ukraine.

The two sets of players mixed together on the pitch at Old Trafford before kick-off in their Premier League clash.

Ralf Rangnick held a peace sign with both sets of players ahead of Manchester United vs WatfordCredit: Getty

Ralf Rangnick initially stood in the middle of his starting XI holding a sign which read peace in six different languages and the universal symbol in the middle.

His stand-in captain Bruno Fernandes then beckoned the Hornets stars over to stand against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a complete abandonment of the Minsk agreements.

United tweeted the poignant image and wrote: “A message from Ralf and the players.” followed by a love heart.

The post received plenty of respect and appreciation from plenty of fans while Atalanta and Ukraine ace Ruslan Malinovskyi replied: “Thank you, lads.”

A number of fans were also pictured wearing yellow Ukraine national football team shirts.

Cristiano Ronaldo had already taken to social media, writing to his 407million followers: “We need to create a better world for our children. Praying for peace in our world.”

The Red Devils have also ripped up their £40million partnership with Russian airline company Aeroflot.

.css-qu9fel{border-top:1px solid #dcdddd;}.css-b9nmbi{margin-bottom:16px;border-top:1px solid #dcdddd;}

.css-1qsre5o{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;height:100%;-webkit-align-items:flex-start;-webkit-box-align:flex-start;-ms-flex-align:flex-start;align-items:flex-start;-webkit-align-content:flex-start;-ms-flex-line-pack:flex-start;align-content:flex-start;-webkit-box-flex-wrap:nowrap;-webkit-flex-wrap:nowrap;-ms-flex-wrap:nowrap;flex-wrap:nowrap;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;justify-content:space-between;}

.css-q8gelu{margin-bottom:24px;}.css-7ysxcx{padding:0;text-transform:uppercase;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}.css-7ysxcx:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}.css-jkwlot{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;height:100%;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;justify-content:space-between;padding:0;text-transform:uppercase;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}.css-jkwlot:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}

.css-1x7hydu{font-family:The Sun;font-size:24px;line-height:1.1666666666666667;font-weight:400;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:semi-condensed;padding:1px 0px;}.css-1x7hydu::before{content:”;display:block;height:0;width:0;margin-bottom:calc(-0.24520833333333342em + -0.5px);}.css-1x7hydu::after{content:”;display:block;height:0;width:0;margin-top:-0.2333333333333334em;}

.css-1lobn43{display:inline;font:inherit;margin:0;color:rgba(0,0,0,1);}.css-1lobn43 svg{fill:rgba(0,0,0,1);}

Most read in Football

.css-1gojmfd{margin-bottom:16px;}

.css-zdjvqv{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;height:100%;-webkit-align-items:flex-start;-webkit-box-align:flex-start;-ms-flex-align:flex-start;align-items:flex-start;-webkit-align-content:flex-start;-ms-flex-line-pack:flex-start;align-content:flex-start;-webkit-box-flex-wrap:nowrap;-webkit-flex-wrap:nowrap;-ms-flex-wrap:nowrap;flex-wrap:nowrap;-webkit-flex-direction:column;-ms-flex-direction:column;flex-direction:column;-webkit-box-pack:space-around;-ms-flex-pack:space-around;-webkit-justify-content:space-around;justify-content:space-around;margin-top:calc(-12px/2);margin-bottom:calc(-12px/2);}.css-zdjvqv:before,.css-zdjvqv:after{content:”;display:block;}

.css-1meuhfk{display:-webkit-inline-box;display:-webkit-inline-flex;display:-ms-inline-flexbox;display:inline-flex;margin-top:calc(12px/2);margin-bottom:calc(12px/2);}

FREE BETS: GET OVER £2,000 IN NEW CUSTOMER DEALS

In the other Premier League matches, Crystal Palace put a message reading ‘We Stand With Ukraine’ on the big screens at Selhurst Park which received widespread applause.

Displaying national flags is not considered a breach of the FA’s political laws.

But individual messages could be investigated on a case-by-case basis and may be subject to sanctions.

Matty Cash celebrated his opener for Aston Villa at Brighton by revealing a message on his undershirt – then got booked for removing his top.

The right-back’s Poland team-mate Tomasz Kedziora plays for Dynamo Kiev and is stuck in the Ukrainian capital.

Everton are set to ditch their pre-match air raid sirens out of respect for left-back Vitaliy Mykolenko and Manchester City’s Oleksandr Zinchenko this evening.

The Toffees will offer to provide support for Mykolenko during these troubling times while West Ham have given winger Andriy Yarmolenko time off.

Two fans at the Manchester United wore Ukraine shirts at Old TraffordCredit: PA
The screens at Selhurst Park displayed a message of supportCredit: Reuters

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk

Tagcloud: FootballPremier LeagueSport

Philippe Coutinho insists he doesn’t regret £142m transfer to Barcelona despite woeful spell at Nou Camp

Aston Villa star Matty Cash scores and is booked for unveiling T-shirt supporting Polish team-mate amid Russian invasion