Graeme Souness insists the Premier League’s reaction to Ukraine was ‘fantastic’

Souness praised the Premier League's response to the invasion of Ukraine

Graeme Souness has praised the Premier League for their response to the invasion of Ukraine but warned that Russia "will be knocking on our doorstep in 10 years" if they aren't "put back in their box." The pundit described the league's message following the Russian invasion in February as "fantastic" and admitted he is proud to be part of a country that "generally does the right things." Souness was alongside Jamie Redknapp and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink working as pundits for Sky Sports as they reflected on the key footballing events of 2022. Despite reserving a lot of praise, Souness reminded players and fans that they must not forget the horrors of Vladimir Putin's organised invasion which are happening 'four hours from us.' "The message we sent out, with the Ukrainian players, the emotions these players showed. Who couldn’t be moved by it?" he said. "We as a country generally do the right things. We must remember this is becoming normalised we are hearing stories of rockets and drones being sent over cities in Ukraine." In March 2022, the Premier League halted all broadcasts of top flight matches in Russia, weeks after Putin's authorised invasion took place. Managers, players and fans were also given permission to display Ukrainian flags in protest of the invasion. But Souness warned that if the UK were to stop supporting Ukraine in their fight against Russia, then they would "be knocking on the doorstep" in a decade's time. He added: "We mustn’t forget this is happening on a daily basis, four hours from us. We must support them until we can put the Russians back in their box, or they’ll be knocking on our doorstep in 10 years." Related links:

• Premier League confirm they will no longer broadcast games in Russia
• Luka Modric FaceTimes 6-year-old Ukrainian boy who lost parents in Russian invasion
• Ex-Russia captain Igor Denisov fears for safety after slamming country’s invasion of Ukraine