A youth footballer for Ukrainian team Shakhtar Donetsk has shocked his club after disappearing in Brussels Airport in Zaventem, only to turn up in Russia.
The eastern Ukrainian football team, who has played in Kyiv since the start of the 2014 war in Donbas, and later in Hamburg in Germany, is one of the most successful teams in the country and a prominent name in the Champions League.
The club, which is scheduled to play against Antwerp at the end of next month, have now confirmed the bewildering disappearance of 19-year-old defender Oleksandr Rosputko during his visit to Belgium for a Youth League match on 4 October.
In a shocking move, Rosputko managed to evade the under-19s team he was travelling with at Brussels Airport. As detailed by Ukrainian media and verified by club sources, Rosputko checked in his luggage and passed all security checks before excusing himself to go to the toilet.
There he reportedly changed his clothes and erased his digital footprints by deleting his social media accounts. The young player then boarded a flight to Turkey, followed by a subsequent transfer to Russia, leaving his belongings, including his official match kit, abandoned at the airport.
Shakhtar Donetsk, in response to Rosputko's startling departure, issued a five-day window for the player to report back. That deadline lapsed without any communication from Rosputko.
The exact reason for his dramatic disappearance is not fully known, but some have speculated that the player may have had pro-Russian leanings. Rosputko is originally from the city of Horlivka in the Donbas, which is occupied by Russian forces.
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An interview the player's father gave to local media UA Football, his father said that Rosputko felt compelled to seek refuge in Russia. "He believes he's safer in Russia than in Ukraine," he explained, adding that his son intends to acquire Russian citizenship.
This unexpected turn of events has compelled Shakhtar Donetsk to terminate Rosputko's contract. The player had represented Shakhtar Donetsk just once in the UEFA Youth League before he fled. He had also made four appearances for Ukraine's national under-19s team.
