POWERFUL STRIKER
Inside tragic abandoned football stadium on war frontline that had direct hit from MISSILE leaving vast crater on pitch
A FOOTBALL stadium in war-torn Ukraine was abandoned after a Russian missile blew a huge chunk out of it.
It was just the latest set back that MFC Mykolaiv, of the Ukrainian Second League, had to endure.
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The Shipbuilders are one of the oldest football clubs in Ukraine and play at the 16,700 all-seater Tsentralnyi Stadion in Mykolaiv.
The stadium, which was constructed in 1965, was left with a 15-metre wide and 5-metre deep crater on its pitch after being hit with a singular missile.
Located in southern Ukraine, the city of Mykolaiv serves as a transportation hub for the country due to its direct access to the Black Sea.
But that meant it became a top target for Russia, who bombed the city from their Bastion coastal missile system located in the occupied Kherson region on June 28, 2022.
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This was confirmed in a statement by the Mykolayiv Regional State Administration, who claimed the city "came under massive missile attack".
Eight missiles were launched but the Ukrainian defence force could only thwart three of them.
The remaining five damaged their military stations and, unfortunately for MFC Mykolaiv, their Tsentralnyi Stadion.
Due to the stadium being closed for a number of months, there were no reported casualties following the attack.
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But the stadium has seen its pitch left in tatters.
Anton Gerashchenko, the officer in Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, said: “This used to be a lawn at the main stadium in Mykolaiv.
"Now it’s a crater. Just imagine what kind of rockets Russians hit the city with."
Mykolaiv finished fourth in the Ukrainian First League during the 2020-21 season but a club decision eventually saw them relegated.
In their first season back in the Second League, they would play just 17 of their 30 games after withdrawing early due to the Russo-Ukrainian War.
Their last competitive fixture came in a 3-0 defeat to Rukh Lviv in a Ukrainian Cup Fourth Round tie on September 21, 2021.
Fans of the club now haven't seen their side play for more than two years, with the stadium being left virtually abandoned in that time.
And to add insult to injury, the stadium has been bombed by Russian missiles as a result of the ongoing war.
It isn't the only stadium in Ukraine to suffer from Russian attacks, however.
The Donbass Arena, once home to Ukrainian champions Shakhtar Donetsk and a host venue for Euro 2012, was shelled in 2014.
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The stadium was hit by two powerful explosions which caused heavy damage to the turnstiles and entrances to the arena.
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