Illia Zabarnyi is Ukrainian, has been at PSG for just over a year, and has never shied away from speaking about the invasion of his country. The former Bournemouth defender was outspoken long before joining the Paris club, making his position on the war between Ukraine and Russia clear at every opportunity. PSG’s social media managers and communications department have even had to devise an internal protocol for handling his relationship with Russian goalkeeper Safonov, who was already at the club when Zabarnyi arrived, leaving them with a situation that was unusual and particularly difficult to manage.
PSG have won everything over the past two years, and then won it all again. There have been no reports of friction between Zabarnyi and Safonov, suggesting the club has handled the situation well. The invasion of Ukraine, however, continues, and Zabarnyi has kept speaking out, answering questions about the war whenever they arise. After the recent match against Strasbourg, for instance, the PSG defender responded to comments by Marine Le Pen, leader of the Front National, who said the French government should stop providing financial aid to Ukraine. “This is clearly a political issue. We are proud of the good relations we have with other European countries. Macron has done a great deal to support Ukraine so far. I hope that, once the new president is elected, he will continue to help Ukraine, because we are defending not only Ukraine, but all of Europe.”
Zabarnyi was taking a clear position against the Front National. As So Foot writes, “every interview is an opportunity, every microphone put in front of him a kind of platform that so many of his compatriots simply do not have. For him, this is not a matter of activism, but a genuine necessity.” Playing far from home for one of the biggest clubs in the world gives Zabarnyi a privileged position, one that can be controversial in certain respects. It has never stopped him from speaking out. In football, where so many of its leading figures struggle to take a clear position on political issues, Zabarnyi has continued to do so.