Marseille midfielder Ruslan Malinovskyi has spoken out about his hug with Monaco's Russian midfielder Aleksandr Golovin after a match in the French championship.
They hugged after the match of the 20th round of Ligue 1. The meeting took place on January 28 and ended 1-1.
Ruslan Malinovskyi on his social media
I would like to apologize to the Ukrainian people for my reaction to the gesture of the Monaco player. I understand that it would have been better if I had walked away from him, but he happened to come up to me and said hello. All players shake hands after the game, and I did it automatically. Being insulted and hated for a moment’s mistake makes me feel uncomfortable. I would not even come out to play against a Russian athlete in an individual sport/
Golovin has been playing for Monaco since 2018. Malinovskiy joined Marseille on loan from Atalanta in January 2023.
His contract with Marseille runs until the summer of 2025. The Transfermarkt portal estimates the Ukrainian's market value at 18 million euros.
