Champions League final in Russia is 'inconceivable with potential war in Ukraine'

St Petersburg's Krestovsky Stadium, known as the Gazprom Arena, is set to hold the showpiece event on May 28 but it could be stripped of the honour due to the nation's actions in eastern Europe.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss told talkSPORT's sister station Times Radio that Russia are set to provoke military action as they attempt 'peacekeeping' operations in Luhansk and Donetsk - 'pro-Moscow' region in the Donbas region of south-eastern Ukraine.

And, as a result, should be stripped as hosts of the Champions League final.

"My view on the final in is that it shouldn't go ahead. Russia has denied the existence of another sovereign state," she told Times Radio.

"It is preparing for a full scale invasion of Ukraine.

"It's been roundly condemned by the international community. I think it would be completely wrong for a football tournament to take place there."

Before later adding: "My view on the final in St Petersburg is it shouldn't go ahead. If I was on an English team I would boycott it.

"If I was a player I certainly wouldn't want to be part of that."

On the current Champions League final situation, Rob Harris from AP told White and Jordan: "It does seem increasingly unlikely it will be held there.

"There is still no final decision at UEFA. They are not rushing it. They have obviously got three months until the game is played."

And Jordan has insisted that the final cannot go ahead in St Petersburg in the current climate, although he has called on other sports to get their houses in order too.

The White and Jordan host said: "How can you, if we are talking about a legitimate potential jeopardy of war in Europe and the country that is the aggressor on that basis is Russia, how can you play a tournament [there]?

"You have got genocide allegations in Beijing and you have the Olympics there. Are we talking about the Formula 1? Are we talking about the F1 races being abandoned from Russia? It can't just be about football. It has to be about every aspect of what's going on in sport.

"We have this ridiculous notion that football should be some virtue signalling environment that separates itself from the commercial obligations that it has against the fact that other people don't seem to be doing it.

"Politics and sport for me are not together - the pitch should be a place of neutrality but in this instance you cannot have the media of the world alighting on a country which is potentially putting the west in jeopardy."

Jordan does, though, understand UEFA's current cautious decision-making process but wants to see a contingency plan put in place in the event of the final being moved.

"What UEFA are doing is, they know the landscape watching the politicians politic this around," he added.

"I think they have to sit back and wait and see how the political landscape manifests itself and prepare contingency plans. And what they have turned their minds to is sensible contingency plans

"In the event there is a situation that really manifests itself then they have got to have a backstop. They have got to be able to put Portugal, or Spain, or Italy on notice to be able to take a tournament that has 100,000 people potentially turning up in a city that needs to be catered for, provided and policed.

"We've seen what happens when things aren't policed properly at Wembley."