Andrey Solomatin, a previous winner of the Russian Premier League, has signed a contract with the Defense Ministry
FILE PHOTO: Andrey Solomatin (C) is seen during a friendly match between Russian and Israeli national teams in Moscow, Russia, on August 16, 2000. © Sputnik / Dmitry Korobeynikov
Former Russian football player Andrey Solomatin has joined the Russian Army, to take part in the ongoing conflict between Moscow and Kiev. The former Lokomotiv and CSKA player called on other Russian football stars to support their fans fighting on the frontlines.
Solomatin appeared in a video published on the Mash Telegram channel on Monday. The former professional football player can be seen wearing a military uniform and armor while apparently being deployed to a frontline position.
The former Russian international says in the footage that he had “joined the Espanola Special Forces unit” and “is near Bakhmut.” The strategic Donbass city known as Artyomovsk in Russia was taken by Russian forces earlier this year.
Initially created as a volunteer battalion, the Espanola unit was established by football fans from several Russian clubs, including CSKA, which Solomatin used to play for. It was formed shortly after the start of Moscow’s military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. The battalion’s soldiers both fight on the frontlines and train new recruits, most of whom come from various football fanclubs.
In his video address, Solomatin called on fellow football stars to do more to support Russian soldiers fighting on the frontlines, including those from the Espanola battalion. “There are guys here, who followed their clubs, who followed you across the country, spending their last money on football tickets,” he said, adding that “these guys now need… support from you.”
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The former player urged other football stars to “turn their faces” towards their fans, adding that he was himself “proud” to have joined the Espanola battalion. Solomatin had earlier traveled to Donbass on several humanitarian missions, during which he also delivered food and supplies for the ‘football fan’ battalion.
He previously praised the battalion by saying he had never seen “such unity among the fans of various clubs at any time.”
Solomatin appeared at the FIFA World Cup with the Russian national team in 2002. He won the Russian Premier League championship while playing with CSKA Moscow in the following year. He was runner-up in the competition six times while playing for CSKA, Lokomotiv and Kuban. In 2005, he also played for the now-defunct Ukrainian football club, Obolon.
