Ukrainian FA vow to strip most-capped player of honours after silence on Russia

Former Ukraine captain and the nation's most capped player Anatoliy Tymoshchuk should be stripped of his honorary titles, the Ukrainian FA have said.

The punishment for Tymoshchuk, who represented Ukraine 's national team a record 144 times, is based on his "silence" on Russia 's invasion of his homeland - on which he is yet to comment.

The former central midfielder is currently assistant manager of Zenit St Petersburg and he has yet to speak out to condemn Russia for invading its geographical neighbour.

The UAF argue that the former Shakhtar Donetsk, Bayern Munich and Zenit midfielder has breached their code of ethics and is damaging the image of Ukrainian football.

They have called for Tymoshchuk to be stripped of his state awards, honorary titles and coaching licences.

The UAF also want all seven of his medals won in Ukrainian football removed and for him to be struck off the nation's register of footballers - meaning that his international caps would no longer be recognised.

Tymoshchuk's decorated career included a decade in Shakhtar Donestk's first team before two stints at Zenit either side of four seasons at Bayern Munich, before retiring in 2016 at Kazakhstani side Kairat.

A statement from the UAF's ethics and fair play committee read: "Since the beginning of Russia's military aggression against Ukraine, Tymoschuk AA, the former captain of the Ukrainian national team, not only did not make any public statements in this regard, but also did not stop his co-operation with the club of the aggressor."

Tymoshchuk won 22 trophies across the entirety of his career including the UEFA Cup with Zenit in 2008 and the Champions League trophy with Bayern four years later.

He was capped a record 144 times by Ukraine between 2000 and 2016, becoming the nation's captain after Andriy Shevchenko retired from the team in 2012.

Other former internationals, such as former Liverpool forward Andriy Voronin, have ended their contracts with Russian clubs and have spoken out against the Vladimir Putin-backed invasion of Ukraine.

The UAF statement continued: "At a time when another former club, Bayern Munich, publishes statements and holds actions in support of Ukraine, Tymoshchuk continues to remain silent and work for the club of the aggressor."

Atalanta playmaker and Ukraine international Ruslan Malinovskyi has previously claimed that Tymoshchuk can no longer be described as a "legend" for Ukraine because of his silence on the issue.

Tymoshchuk is a three-time Ukrainian player of the year and won four national titles while with Shakhtar and represented Ukraine at three major international tournaments including the 2006 World Cup.