Ukraine Stadium Still Out Of Action

Its 52,000 orange-and-black seats are stacked away in the corridors around the stadium. Being in the middle of the war zone controlled by pro-Russian separatists battling Ukrainian troops, the building’s also taken the occasional hit from shells and missiles.

Shakhtar, which has bought and sold so many Brazilian players – including UK Premier League stars such as Willian and Fernandinho – it’s known as “the most Brazilian club in Europe,” now plays its home matches 600 miles away in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, near the border with Poland. Last year, the club won the Ukrainian Premier League. It’s currently second, five points adrift of Dynamo Kiev.

The players expected to be away from Donetsk for a short time, but the fighting that’s now claimed more than 6,000 lives has caused many to rent apartments in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev and travel by bus to their home games in Lviv. “It’s the first time in my life that I haven’t been home for a long time,” 22-year-old defender Ivan Ordets, who was born in Donetsk, told the Associated Press. “My uncle, my aunt, my dad – they’ve stayed in the east of Ukraine. In that way, it’s hard and I’m worried for them,” he said.

When the current players are sold or their contracts expire, the team might find it hard to attract high-quality replacements if it does not have a permanent home.