February 19 – A Russian footballer who removed his shirt to provocatively reveal a picture of Vladimir Putin at a Europa League fixture in Turkey is to be punished by his club which in turn is to be sanctioned by UEFA.
Lokomotiv Moscow midfielder Dmitri Tarasov’s undervest showed Mr Putin wearing a Russian navy cap with the words “the most polite president” following Tuesday’s politically-charged 2-0 defeat to Fenerbahce, the biggest sporting encounter between the nations since Turkey shot down a Russian jet in November.
Lokomotiv Moscow called Tarasov’s behaviour “unacceptable” but the club will be penalised too since players are prohibited from making political statements.
After the game Tarasov was defiant. “This is my president. I respect him and decided to show that I am ready to support him wherever I am,” he said. “I wrote on this T-shirt everything that I wanted to say.”
Several Turkish news outlets decried Tarasov’s action as a “provocation” but before the match in Istanbul, bottles were thrown at the Lokomotiv team bus as it made its way to the stadium. Turkish police said they made three arrests.
However, UEFA rejected calls to separate Russian and Turkish clubs in European competitions and will also not separate the two nations in the draw for this summer’s European Championship.
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