The striker joined AEK in January
Cypriot AEK striker Artem Gromov commented on being included in the list of athletes who did not return to the country after traveling abroad during a full-scale war with Russia, published Ministry of Youth and Sports.
“To be honest, I’m very surprised. The question immediately arises, why are I and Kulach there, but there are no Ukrainian players who moved to Premier League clubs in winter? This immediately suggests some sort of selectivity.”
“It would be interesting to hear the comments of the Ministry of Youth and Sports on this matter. If I violated something, then I apologize, but the law should be the same for everyone.
“I terminated the contract with Dnepr-1 unilaterally, there was such an option in my agreement. At this time, we were in the Slovak Kosice, where the team was based. After the autumn part of the championship, I received an offer from AEK Larnaca, I notified the club about the termination of the contract and moved to Cyprus.
“I signed a lot of papers in Dnipro-1, perhaps there was a document according to which I had to return to Ukraine with the team. But I didn’t go into it, and I don’t blame the club for anything. Football is my job and I didn’t do anything wrong. Like our entire country, I support the Armed Forces of Ukraine and look forward to a speedy victory over the invaders.”
Gromov moved to AEK in January as a free agent. Artem signed a contract with the Cypriot club for a year and a half.
Recall that the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine allowed athletes to cross the border to participate in international competitions in agreement with the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. However, a number of athletes violated their obligations to temporarily return to Ukraine.
The list of the Ministry of Sports includes 236 athletes, including striker Artem Gromov, Azerbaijani forward Ziri Vladislav Kulach, hockey player Filipp Pangelov-Yuldashev, as well as basketball players Andrei Kozhemyakin and Alexander Kobets.
It should be noted that among the violators there are no three Ukrainian football players who in the winter of 2023 made transfers to European clubs: Mykhailo Mudryk, who moved to Chelsea, Viktor Tsyhankov, who became a Girona player, and Ilya Zabarny, who moved to Bournemouth.
Source: Sportarena
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