Piers Morgan Uncensored - Piers Morgan Uncensored: Oleksandr Zinchenko, ITV Bosses in the Dock, Non-Man

Episode Date: June 14, 2023

On tonight's episode of Piers Morgan Uncensored, Piers speaks to Arsenal's Ukrainian star Oleksandr Zinchenko, on the situation in his country, Arsenal and more. Piers looks into how the ITV deny ignoring the Phillip Schofield affair. Also Piers assesses how a top US university redefines a lesbian as a 'non-man' who is 'attracted to non-men'. Watch Piers Morgan Uncensored at 8 pm on TalkTV on Sky 522, Virgin Media 606, Freeview 237 and Freesat 217. Listen on DAB+ and the app.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I'm Piers Morgan. I'm censor tonight. An extraordinary exclusive interview with a Premier superstar. Ukraine's Alexander Zinchenko opens up on the horrors of war on Vladimir Putin, on President Zelensky, and whether he'd fight for his own country, and why Russian sports stars should be banned. Also tonight, ITV and the dot network bosses are grilled by MPs and deny ignoring Philip Schofield's affair with the young male colleague. But can we trust them? Plus, J.K. Rowling, blast one of the top universities in the United States after it redefines a lesbian as a non-man attracted to non-men. What is this garbage? We will talk about that on air. From the news building in London, this is Piers Morgan Unsensurate.

Well, good evening from London. Welcome to Pierce Morgan Unsensored. Premier League footballers often get a bad rap. We call them, I've called them, pampered prima donnas, an overpaid waste. We say they're selfish, arrogant, lazy. They're also very often accused of being boring. Media coach to the eyeballs, afraid to speak their minds. Well, Alexander Zinchenko is an antidote to all of that. He's someone I greatly admire on and off the pitch. She plays for my beloved team Arsenal.

And after tonight, I think more people will admire him too. I sat down with him earlier today for what turned out to be an extraordinarily passionate, raw and emotional interview about the world. war in Ukraine, about the impact on all Ukrainians like him. It's already making waves across the world. We didn't talk much about football. There wasn't time. We spoke a lot about his homeland, a lot about the war. Zinchenko's got more than 50 captains his national team. He's captained his national team at the age of 24, which was the youngest ever to do so. Like millions of Ukrainians, he has friends and loved ones over there who are facing being shelled and bombed, mutilated, attacked.

raped in their homes. This is all because of Putin's barbaric form of genocide against his people. And tonight, he opens up on Vladimir Putin. What are your thoughts about Vladimir Putin? I don't want to even say his name. He's lying to himself. Or whether he would go to war himself,

you would fight for Ukraine. Of course. Of course. And why Russian and Belarusian athletes should be banned from international sport. They shouldn't be allowed to compete. Shouldn't be allowed. This is not political. It's life and death. This is war.

And why he won't shake hands with any Russian footballer. If you had to come up against a team and had a Russian player, would you shake the hat? No chance. Well, it was extraordinary stuff. I've got to say, one of the most powerful interviews I've done in a long time with an incredibly impressive young man. It was gripping. It was heart-rending. It was shocking. He'd just come back from his first trip to Ukraine since the war started. And the impact of what he saw was very real. It's the kind of thing you don't often see from a superstar footballer, frankly. But I'm glad

that he opened up to me, and I'm grateful for his time. And we'll be showing a lot of that interview later in today's program. But first, Jeremy now has Talk TV presenter, Nicola Thorpe, and talk to the contributor Esther Crack. It was abrasive talk TVers. Summer's here, Esther, I noticed, with your outfit. It's too hot to be fully closed in winter garment. Of course. It's always too hot to be fully closed in my estimation. Otherwise, life gets very boring. All right, Nicola, let's talk, first of all, about Boris Johnson.

Yes. Tomorrow, we're told we're going to get this Privileges Committee report. It's so damning. He's already quit. And he's now been spending the last three days throwing his toys out of a gigantic pram. Yeah. Which indicates to me that he's feeling very... beleaguered and possibly thinks this report is so damning that there may be no way back for him. Can we hope this or is he like a boomerang?

Or every time you throw him away, back he comes? I mean, we can hope and pray. I'm actually praying that the Speaker of the House decides to remove his parliamentary pass as a result of everything that's gone on as they did with John Burko. Of course, we need to remember that Boris Johnson didn't have to resign. It wasn't necessarily going to be the outcome that he would be suspended longer than 10 days. it would have had to first go to the MPs. Then he could have taken a petition to his constituents.

But he threw his toys out of the pram. And then three minutes before midnight, I believe, on Monday. He made another submission to the parliamentary committee. They've now reviewed that. I think it's well overdue that we get the results of this. Boris says let people judge the report for themselves. Well, yeah, we will. Yeah, we will.

I mean, Esther, he's come out fighting today because Bernard Jenke, and one of the people on the Privileges Committee, was apparently a some party himself. during the lockdown periods. Therefore, he says he's a hypocrite. Therefore, he should resign. Therefore, of course, nothing this report does. It's very Trumpian always.

But the thing is, he could be right. If it's proven that he was actually at a party, fine. He has broken the rules. But it shouldn't come from Boris, right? This man has no principles to speak of. I mean, he allegedly resign for his principles, but he has none. He has no principles.

He has no convictions. He's clearly not taking responsibility for what's happened. And really, it's in the interest of the Conservative Party to distance themselves from him as quickly and as efficiently as possible. Don't even mention his name because I think it's a complete disrespect to the country for what he put this country through

whilst... What's amazing, a bit like with Donald Trump, he still carries this large number of people that like him. Well, he's such a narcissist. And actually the naughty of the stuff, the more they like him. It's like a magnet

to naughty moths, right? It's like the worse he behaves, the more damning the judgments, the worse the stuff that comes, the better some people think he is. But I don't think that will ever be, again, the majority of the country. Well, that's the key thing, isn't it? Yeah.

All right, let's turn to ITV. So you had all the bosses hauled down there by the House of Commons select committee today over this Philip Schofield scandal. I was apparently the first question. So we might as well listen to it. Pierce Morgan said, and I quote, everybody at ITV knew what was happening. Somehow you and perhaps Holly Willoughby were the only ones who did not know. The people that have said they knew would only have heard rumours about it.

If any one of the individuals you have named or referenced had come to us and said, there is evidence that there is a relationship between Phillips Schofield and Person X, we would have, with evidence, we would have been able to launch a formal investigation. So it's quite interesting in this, Nicola, because Dame Carolyn McCall there, We're supposed to take her word for all this, right? I can only go on what my experience with her was when I live Good Morning Britain, where she has repeatedly said since then,

Meghan Markle's letter to her, had nothing to do with my departure. That's just a brazen lie. I know that because she's told other people had everything to do with my departure. So I'm dubious about the veracity of what she says. But on the investigation, here's what I think about that.

They said their investigation basically constituted asking Phillips Schofield and this young runner are you having a relationship to which they both repeatedly said, no. That's not an investigation, is it? I mean, everyone, the whole, when I said the whole building near, everyone was rum-a-monging about this.

Well, the young man had gone to the National TV Awards and he broken down after a few drinks and told everyone in the ITV box, I'm in love with Phillips Schofield. This wasn't a secret. So the idea that their investigation began and end with, well, are you doing it? No. That's not an investigation.

But I understand the position that she's in is a difficult one because she said today that they'd investigated it or they'd spoken to both of them 12 times. And as Esther said, if two people deny that they're in a relationship, there's very little that they can do. Is it an egregious offence for a guy in his 50s

to be having a relationship with someone age 20 at work? I mean, in the old days, 40% of marriages began in the workplace, normally with an older guy and a younger woman, just historically. Well, I don't think it's an egregious offense. Actually, I do think that the nature of how we've been even in talking about this is completely inappropriate. We should be talking about his wife, who he lied to, and his, his, his daughter.

But that's his business. But the thing is, but that's what I think is actually more. But that is his business. I'm just quite, I'm not quite sure what the crime. It's so bad, apparently, that everyone agreed, Philip's entire career had to be destroyed. And yet, I'm not seeing evidence of a serious crime. I'm seeing him, you know, he's got a personal struggle with his sexuality. Okay.

A lot of people do. He's had a relationship, all right, it's inappropriate, yeah, okay. Where's the crime here? There's no crime there, but it is an abuse of power. If somebody, not just that age, but that level of power within an institution. But the alleged victim hasn't said that. They haven't said what, sorry. Well, the alleged victim hasn't complained.

No, but ultimately. And hasn't made any protest about the so-called abuse of power. So my question is, they have decided it is. But it sounded like very much. But there's no complaint from the supposed victim. No, but it sounded very much like a mutual agreement that they realised that his position was untenable because of the denials over the relationship.

Well, that's not really what is borne out by what they said in the committee. They actually said that he got promoted to a new job at loose women. No, but Phillips Schofeel's position was untenable as a result. Yeah, maybe. Because he just had to go. Maybe. I think the more we don't hear more bombshells,

the more we don't hear contradictions of Schofield's story, I'm just curious whether people do think what he did was a hanging offence. You may not like it. You know, I don't particularly think it was particularly edifying. He shouldn't have done it. But end of a career, shamed, vilified, you know, put on the old pitchforks. I don't know.

I think it's because Philip got him his job at, you know, ITV. And that's where the abuse of power comes in. Because he's powerful enough to get him through the door. He's powerful enough to manipulate his career in that way. But it is legal. The man in question hasn't said anything illegal happened. Even if you can argue that it was inappropriate, It's not illegal.

Okay. You're going to come back later, Pat. We're going to play my interview with Alexander Zincenka now. It is extraordinary interviews. So we're going to watch this and then you guys can comment about it later. And I'll talk to you about the latest load of woke,

Woke, Virtue, Sigmund, nonsense because it's right up your alley. Welcome back to Piz, Morgan Osset, now to an extraordinary exclusive interview with Ukraine and Arsenal superstar Alexander Zinchenko. It's not very often you get to hear a Premier League star talking like this.

Vladimir Putin's brutal war in Zincenko's home country of Ukraine has wrecked countless lies. But many people with his profile prefer to shy away from talking about such contentious things. He's not one of them. He's chosen to use his platform to rally support for the people suffering in his homeland and to condemn the people responsible for him.

He was speaking, of course, in a personal capacity, but he didn't hold back. Alex, thank you so much for agreeing to talk to me. I've wanted to talk to you ever since this war in Ukraine started, and particularly so since you came and joined. in my club, Arsenal, which I've supported all my life. Because to watch a player like you having to go on a football pitch twice a week with all that's going on back in your home country shows me that you must have incredible mental

strength. How difficult has it been for you? Well, thanks a lot for this invitation. It's a really pleasure to talk to you. and I'll tell you honestly, I'll be honest, I'll try to be honest. It was not easy, you know, to adopt on this. But unfortunately, unfortunately, all of us, I'm talking about football players which is playing abroad.

It's not easy, you know, to be far away from the home and then watching all these scary things which is happening. But I remember quite well first couple of weeks that I just lost my head. I didn't know where I am. I didn't know where I'm driving to, to the training ground or where I didn't know. Honestly, I was like in the space.

I couldn't believe that this has happened. And but in the end, you know, there is two options. You just keep being in the space or you have to do your best to help to help your country, to help Ukrainian people, as much as you can. You have to represent your country in the best way you could. So this is the conversation was between all of us, broad players, which is playing for the national team.

And obviously, that was my decision to carry on, to do my best and to help as much as I can. Because I know that I will be much, much more helpful to my country and to the people from here. rather than being there. But I really want to be there. When did you know that Russia had invaded your country? Well, it was a deep night. I was sleeping because I had session in the morning, and my wife suddenly woke me up, and she said, it started. I said, what started? She was crying, you know,

like full in tears. And what started? What's wrong? And she just showed me the videos, the pictures of this invasion. So that's how it all started and that's how I... Obviously, you know, if you look at a bit back, look, let me, let me be clear. Some of the people still think, or they still talk that this is a conflict between two countries, but this is not conflict.

This is a proper war, right? And this war started in 2014. when I was like 17 or something, right? And I couldn't even understand what's going wrong. And they took Crimea and Donbass without any resistance. And you were playing at Shakhtar Donets at the time, and you couldn't play, right? Well, all Shaqtar moved to the other city, but I had another story, football story, which we can speak later a bit. But I'm talking about just the general invasion.

And they took Crimea and Donbass without any resistance in 2014 And no one could understand what's obviously happened And then obviously in 2022 Since the main invasion across the all Ukraine It's scary to be honest, it's scary I still cannot understand for what to achieve what I mean it was terrifying to watch it And I'm not Ukrainian

I can't even imagine what it must have been like for you and your family to watch your country being illegally invaded and in such a brutal barbaric manner where very quickly Russian forces were committing atrocities, war crimes. I went to Bucca when I went to Ukraine and heard some of the stories there of the appalling massacre there. To actually be Ukrainian and watch these scenes

must have been an appalling thing. Imagine the place where you was born and raised. You know every single stone there. You know everything around yourself. You know the people around yourself. You have some friends, some friends, I don't know, job. And then one day, someone from the other countries with the guns coming there, destroying everything around, raping your, I don't know, your woman, kids,

killing men, and then living. stealing everything around, everything what you achieved, what you, I don't know, what you bought before, for no reason. You reckon in 2022 this is possible? I don't know, but it is. And, you know, using this kind of opportunities even to talk to you, I would like to send another message to the rest of the world. I know some people have got fatigue. I know this. but why it's so important to keep going, to keep pushing,

to stick to be together, to stick together and to win this terrorist invasion, it's so important because today Ukraine is a shield for all the Europe. And you never know today is Ukraine, but tomorrow it could be your country. I completely agree. It could be your country. It could be any country. Exactly.

What are your thoughts about Vladimir Putin? I don't want to even say he's not. name I don't want to even say his name or to talk about him it's incredible honestly just yesterday I watched because I'm following all the news and I watched a short clip of his video when he was talking to someone sitting on the table I don't know even these people who was there around it's like young men and girls and he was talking about Cahovka Dam which they destroyed one week ago and he was saying that obviously Ukraine did it well 100,000 of people lost their houses some of

them didn't survive there there was one zoo 300 animals died and everyone was talking about Ukrainian counterattack I'm talking about army and then he was saying in the video he was saying Ukraine did it because they were planning to do counter-attack and then this dam makes them so slow slower and like you're just trying to put it in your head well you are Ukrainian army you want to do counter-attack and you destroying them to make your counter-attack

makes no sense and he's just saying this I was like watching no no I need to watch it again if I didn't hear properly. So he's lying to himself. He did, I don't know. I know that there is a proper propaganda. I know because I had experience to playing there, but I never followed the news or whatever.

But honestly, like, if I had some circle when I was playing there, now this circle became to zero. Because I don't understand people. Well, I was going to ask you, you went and played in the Russian Premier League for one and a half season. Yeah. And you did that because of what was happening in the Dombas and your family moved to Russia. And you're Russian speaking, of course.

You must have made lots of friends in Russia. Are any of these people still friends of yours? Or have you had to... Not a lot, to be honest. Not a lot. Well, I know that I had this experience in my life, right? But... And some of the people from Ukraine, they don't like it, obviously.

And to be honest, at the moment, me too, right? But I'm human being and I understand one thing that I would like to say again, thanks to FC Ufa for everything what they have done. The Russian team. Yeah, where I played, yeah. But that's it. We've seen some Ukrainian athletes, sportspeople, now refusing to shake hands with either Russian or Belarusian athletes. How do you feel about that? If you had to come up against a team

and had a Russian player, would you shake that? No chance. No chance. Because I would never accept their reaction. Honestly. I have to be honest. Do you think it's cowardly, the lack of reaction? I totally agree with this reaction. It's not impossible. It's no point to even explain it.

The things, look, you can say, well, but they didn't do anything again. us or something. Yes, they did. They did. How and what? They didn't react. Look, they have followers behind them. Millions followers in social media or whatever. They have a lot of chances to speak out to the people which is following them. And if you have, let's say, 10 million followers in Instagram and you post some people, I don't know, one picture like stop it, just, you know, black phone, stop it. Some people is from these 10 million is going to follow you. They go.

going to spray this as well to someone else and it will work in the end but if no one is going to speak out because they scare I'm so sorry I'm so sorry don't don't never call us brothers or whatever like they did it in the past never again that's my that's my Wimbledon tennis for example has just said they will allow Russian and Belarusian players to play this year having banned them before do you agree with that decision no chance even they should just no chance I don't agree I don't agree I don't agree I'm one of the Ukrainians which is which is which don't like to see them in any on the highest level in any sport.

So they should just be exactly. And do you think both countries, Russia and Belarus? For sure, 100%. They shouldn't be allowed to compete. Shouldn't be allowed. Why? Because how many bombs and rockets have been sending from Belarus? How many? Listen, I'm not political.

I didn't understand anything about it. I don't understand. And I would never understand it because this is not my area. But this is not political. It's life and death. This is war. And they're talking about don't put politics in sport. This is not political.

This is war. Guys, you don't do anything to be, I'm not saying on our side, on the justice side. Extraordinary passion and eloquence from Alexander Zincenko. Uncensored, the next exposes second half. our interview or I ask him, can Ukraine win the war? And if it came to it, would he himself go to war? Welcome back to Pittsburgh and Oncensit on the final part of my interview with Alexander Zinchenko. We talk about the fundraising game. He's organizing to raise cash for the war's victims about whether he's prepared to fight himself. But first, about his personal tragedies.

Do you know people who've lost their lives? Of course I know people. Friends of yours? Well, not like close, close friends, but yes, friends. But people you knew. People I knew. They'd been killed? Yeah, killed.

Destroyed by bombs. In their homes? Yeah. They didn't do anything like bad to them, but they didn't deserve it. Do you spend your entire time just checking to see what's happening? Every single day, I don't know how many hours, honestly. Just watching. In the morning, first what I do, I'm taking my phone and checking all the news.

How does it make you feel? Like I said, unfortunately, unfortunately, we already get used to it, to this routine. And we have to be strong. You have family, of course, in Ukraine. Yeah. I mean, you must worry yourself sick about them. Well, of course, I'm so worried about them. And I tell you what, the mentality of people, they don't want to live.

They don't want to leave the country. they could this is their homeland and I would like for sure after football career I will be living in Ukraine that's for sure one million percent because I didn't been there for two years and now I was I had trip there one week ago and obviously the as soon as I passed the border it's just my homeland it's just my place I can't imagine what it's like for example to have your parents living in a country at war when you're here. How is that for you sort of psychologically to have to deal with that?

Well, it's not easy. It's not easy to... It was not easy from the beginning. But, you know, when you're already in this routine, you're just getting used to it. And the thing is, if you follow all the instructions, in terms of siren and you hide yourself in the bunker you more or less safe but you never know because even last night they destroyed they destroyed I don't know one building in Odessa three people died straight

so you went back to Ukraine very recent the first time you've been there since the war started it's one thing to see video footage on the news or on social media it's another to be there to see the actual devastation when I went to Kyiv last summer to be able to go to places like Bukkah and see what had happened and to talk to people who'd been caught up in that, who'd lost loved ones, who'd been shelled, he'd had people they knew raped and murdered.

I mean, it was horrific. What was it like for you as a Ukrainian to go back to your country and actually see it? Well, it's completely different when you see it from your phone rather than from your eyes. painful, you know? It's not like scary, oh, because I've seen it every, I've seen it by by social medias and stuff, but it's so painful. It's so painful how people suffering, how people trying to survive and I don't know, it's just a simple example that

thanks to our president that he made this made this happen. Well, that moment on the first night. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's what I was trying to say. When he did that video in his combats with guys around him and he said, I'm not going anywhere. That was powerful for me. That was the moment where the country looked to their leader and he was going to stay, even if it meant he died.

And this is about this story as well. When U.S. president calling you and saying that, look, I know I have information that you target number one and your family target number two. Please let me take you somewhere they will never find you. And he said, listen, I really appreciate everything what you are doing and stuff. But I don't need taxi. I need guns and bullets. How you're not going to follow this president?

How are you not going to, how are you not going to, I don't understand. What's incredible about him is that he was before all this. He was, you know, five years ago, he was a TV star. It's crazy to think that this guy who was just known on Ukrainian television for sort of light entertainment has become such an influential and inspiring wartime leader, isn't it? Well, yeah, it's incredible stuff, but in the same time, I used to say, it doesn't matter what you'd have done in the past. It's so important who you are today and what are you doing today. So the job he's doing is honestly I have no worse about this. Seeing that from inside,

even don't understand a lot of things still. People say he should do a deal. He should end the war, bring the peace by giving Russia some of the land they've taken. What do you feel about that? No chance. Listen, how many? Imagine, imagine you lost someone from your service. And, no, no, let's go to the beginning. I was born and raised, knowing that Crimea is, and Donbass is Ukraine.

Yeah, I spent five years of my life, most of the beautiful five years in my life in Donetsk. Amazing city, amazing. And then at some point, it's already Russian. How? For what? Do they have to do they have the right to do that? Why we should give them how many people already been killed? How many buildings was destroyed? And why we should give them? I don't understand so you reckon you lost someone from your circle and then in one day We're gonna do that like you said. We're gonna give them land and then you're gonna sit and

well, I lost one of my circle. For the reason, because we were fighting for that, and now you gave them like this? Just your reaction. Just your feelings. Do you feel most Ukrainians feel this way? For sure. For sure.

100%. I don't know why they still sending every single night bombs to Ukraine during the night from 1 a.m. till 5. you know, when you sleep so, so deep. Always sleep. Why? Like, in my opinion, maybe I can be wrong.

Like, to keep people in fear. Yes. To try to push people to go against our president, to let us go against our president and to stop. To break the car, right? Yeah, exactly. So that's what they're trying to reach. And people living with that already more than one and a half year.

Do you believe Ukraine can win the war? I don't believe. I know. I know we're going to win. We already won. Because they didn't expect what we're going to do. They didn't expect this. Maybe they thought like they're saying, for three days they do parrots,

parrots in Kiev, city center, or what they were thinking, I don't know. It's impossible to give our homeland like this, our place where we're born and raised. And to people who say, like you say, they've got tired by it or they got bored, if you like, What do you say about what Ukraine needs now in terms of firepower? Would you like to see countries like the UK who've been very good so far,

but also the United States and other countries? Do you want to see them give Ukraine more weaponry, give them more ability to win the war? I would love to see that. But in the same time, what I know and what I can see, that they are giving everything what they can. But of course, obviously, you never know all of us, we will never know, is it everything or is not everything, but still, I would like to say, using this opportunity, I would like to say massive thanks for all the help around the world and support which we received and receiving every single day. And I really appreciate that.

I mean, many United Kingdom people have taken in Ukrainian families. Are you grateful that they've done that? Well, I'm so proud of this moment, honestly. Since the invasion started, the little kids used to come to me in the shop. I was thinking, like, maybe they want to make a picture or something. No, they came to me like saying, Alex, we are praying for all your people and your country, and we hope it will finish very soon. So it means a lot for me, you know.

It means people staying with us. How hard has it been to play football at an elite level? Arsler were chasing the Premier League title this season, very nearly won it. how hard has it been for you to try and perform to the level that you're used to performing at with all this going on? Look, football is my life.

This is the place where I feel most comfortable myself. And this is the place when I'm on the beach I just forget everything around myself. I'm just in the game enjoying these moments and

it's everything. from your head how you how you behave how you react on this this sometimes I'm losing my head from the morning straight away seeing the news all day don't touch me please does you make you emotional so much so much but now I guess I am no emotions at all inside I'm completely empty because I'm a sensitive person to be honest and seeing all these scary things I think I left I left it all and You said it's hard or not hard. It's hard for the people which is staying on the forefront line,

taking their risk of their lives every single second. Having babies at home, families, wives. It's hard for them. You told a story, I think, about a woman who had two young children, babies. And when the dam was blown up, she died. And you had some knowledge of this woman, I think. Well, I read it in the social media and then I asked a couple of people, a couple of volunteers, is it true or not? And they said, yes, unfortunately, it's true.

It's hard to read. It was so hard to read and I couldn't even believe. I really didn't want to believe in that. And I was just thinking about this for two days and then I was calling some of the people which is helping there in that region. And they said, unfortunately, it's true. Honestly, it's, it's so hard. I mean, just that image when I read that of this woman with these two babies, and then the water was coming and she knew she was probably going to die with her kids.

It's just, it's not just heartbreaking, it's enraging. The question is to achieve what? They don't need for to achieve what. You know that in that region there is a lot of plants growing before used to grow. And now when all water will go down, it's not going to grow anymore for a year. It's a big ecological catastrophe, massive. Where you come from right now, every day people are getting killed? Well, all of us Ukrainians, we are praying and we're hoping that our victory is not far away.

And all of us, you know, I'm talking about the rest of the world, all the people which is helping us and supporting us. We believe that we're going to be this invasion, that's for sure. You're going to be a father again soon, and you have a little two-year-old girl. Has having your own child and another child to come, has that given you something extra when it comes to how you think about this war and what's going on with the young kids back home? I'll be honest with you. When I'm playing or seeing my daughter's smile,

I'm over the moon. I'm straight away forgetting about everything. around myself and in the same time I'm just thinking about being a doubt I'm just thinking about about the people in there which have exactly the same kids and then some of them been killed for no reason some of them didn't come back home and I don't know it makes me so disappointed so disappointed have you wanted to join the fighting yourself If there will be a time, everyone will be there.

If we'll be the last call or something or whatever, if we'll be a call, we go, all of us, we go. You would go. Everyone will go. You would fight for Ukraine. Of course. Of course. But in the same time, I'm just thinking about today, I'm thinking about that I'm much, much more helpful from here at the moment.

But listen, you never know what's going to happen. maybe this is the last speech when we're going to speak to each other. You never know. You never know. And how many people already been killed by this invasion? I'm not seeing myself hiding somewhere. I'm not seeing myself hiding somewhere. Alex, it's been an honor to talk to you. Honestly, thank you for your time.

I wish you all the best of this game. It's going to be star-studded, lots of great players. Can we have a few names? Gerald Piquet, I think, is playing. And Clarence Seedorff, you've got some other friends of yours you've roped in. Robert Piraes, I hear. Yeah, well, you said already a lot of names. And to be honest, we would like to announce it step by step.

Are you looking for a slightly older striker? Are you ready? Are you fit enough? You don't wake up with a body like this without a lot of hard work and effort. Yeah. I'm ready for the call. Okay. Let's speak with our manager. Let's speak with our manager, eh?

I'm not quite as fast as I used to be, but I'm lethal in the 60. So, Lou, you're like me? Yeah. Okay. So slow on the fish. Well, you said already a lot of names, but for sure, there will be a lot of legends on the beach. And a lot of people which will be able to watch it from the stadium or even by TV, they're going to have fun. But the main target is from this match is...

to raise the funds for the for the for the school in churninghue region to rebuild it and obviously apart from this this is another powerful message to the rest of the world that obviously we stick together we stay together and all these people from different international nationality i mean different countries they they stay with us look the the leaders from different countries brazil or whatever they stay with us. So even this is another message to the Russian civilians which is still believing and supporting what they do, this is another message like, okay, you can watch your propaganda for 20 years on the same TV channel and you can

believe in this, but in the same time in the end of the day you can just think, well, okay, this is one information but from the other side all the world is against us. Maybe they have a reason or maybe this is maybe I need to find the real truth. So you never know. Obviously I lost my hope already like long time ago. I'm talking about Russian civilians that they can do anything. I lost my hope. I'm not hoping anymore but still you never know. When I interviewed your president, we ended it with the words Slava Ukraine. Heroim Slava.

I wish you all the very best for you and your family. Thank you so much. And to your country. Thank you so much. I think you're going to win. That's going to be a powerful message that dictators can't just invade countries when they feel like it and kill everyone they feel like

and break in a village and do what they want. Actually, they can be held accountable. I know we're going to win for sure. Alex, thank you very much. Thank you. Good to see you. Thank you. What a remarkable young man in his mid-20s.

He's a footballer. But wow, what an interview. Came away really giving me a lot of food for thought. I'm sure he has with you, the viewers, too. Uncensored next, the PAC will be back when to give their reaction to that interview. We'll debate that argument he made that all Russian and Belarusian athletes should be banned from sporting events. Welcome back to Pittsburgh and Unsolved, Nick. It's quite an interview that.

Wasn't it, Nicola? I mean, you know, it's patronised. You don't often hear footballers talk about, but you don't. No, I mean, he really changed my mind on so many different things. I went into that interview thinking that it was right for Russian players to play or go in as independents. and he spoke so articulately impression. I've argued that, actually, on the show.

I've argued it. My instinct was you shouldn't ban the individuals. But when you listen to what he said, it's quite a convincing argument. Complete change of heart, because what are they putting on the line? I've argued, I've defended people and said, well, what if Russia causes harm to them or their families and he would just turn around and say,

well, what is he doing to my entire country? In order to be an ally, you have to be all in. Or you're not. I think, actually, you could imagine a scene at Wimbledon where there could be. be a Russian male tennis winner, okay? And he talks about him a bit cryptically in that interview. But if he was to lift it and be presented with it by a member of the British royal family, that's a hell of a moment for the Russians to claim a victory, right? I get it. But I still feel

very uncomfortable with banning, you know, people from certain countries because of their nation's, you know, political stance on many things. And I also think we have to... Because where do you stop, right? Exactly. But we also have to remember that, you know, they are not their country. And you can't punish individuals for something that their country. And you can't punish individuals for something that their countrymen have done. But you also have to remember it's his country. Yeah, but he said something really remarkable. It's his friends who've been killed.

It's his family who live in terror. And I can completely understand why Zinchenko feels the way he does. But they're Russian victims as well. But they're Russian victims. I don't necessarily agree with it all, but I understand why he feels that way. I think that the idea that you can punish someone

for an individual for something that their country does is really wrong. I don't agree with that. I don't think it's going to move the needle. And I also think we have to remember that there are Russian people on the other side who are also victims of Putin's war. And I don't think you're going to get very far

by trying to convince people that, you know, you should ban Russian or Belarusian. There's been a mixed reaction on social media, as I would have expected. But I thought, I could have said, I just thought he was so raw and kind of articulate and emotion charge. This felt real, right?

This wasn't the normal PR-controlled footballer interview. This was a guy bearing his soul about something that has been the most life-changing thing in his world, right? Yeah, and I really think it helped. for British viewers as well. We often get fatigued with stories like this. As he said.

Yeah, a year on, people are going, well, you know, there's only so many images you can see and feel horrified by, but to see it through his eyes was really, really powerful. I think one thing that he said that I found, you know, quite interesting was he said it's not political. Like, you know, standing with... To him, it's war.

But the thing is political. Of course. Exactly. That's why they're two sides of everyone. But he doesn't feel political if you're on the receiving end of the box, right? You just feel like my people have been killed. Yeah, but he plays for, you know, one of the biggest clubs in the Premier League.

He has millions of eyes. on him every week. He is a very powerful tool to keep, you know, the attention on this war going. And I think, you know, I think he should be using that. I think it's very... And they're doing this big charity game here, Andrei Shevchenko, another Ukrainian football legend, at Chelsea, August 5th, is to raise money to rebuild one of the schools that have been demolished. 800 schools have been really badly damaged in Ukraine, 220 irreparably. Messing the damage to the kids, education, everything. I want to just segue to something far more insignificant, really, but it has wide-ranging

I think consequences if it's allowed to carry on. The John Hopkins University, a centre of medical brilliance around the world in Baltimore, has come up with a glossary of their LGBTQ plus guide, and it's redefined the word lesbian. It says that whilst past definitions refer to lesbians a woman who is emotionally, romantically, and or sexually attracted to other women,

this updated definition is apparently includes non-binary people who identify with that. So a lesbian is now a non-man attracted to non-men. And yet bizarrely, in the same glossary, a gay man is a man who's emotionally romanticly attracted to another man. Even you, surely, throw the towel in now. I think they just did this to wind you up and it's worked. No, I think that what they've done rather clumsily, I'll admit,

is explain that the term lesbian literally just means for women who are attracted to women, whereas gay can be used to describe lesbians. They can mean just a man who's in love with a man or a woman who's in love with a woman, whereas lesbian is just for women. They have airbrushed the word woman again. And we see this time and again where medical institutions and universities, they just won't use the word woman.

Well, yes, but I am curious because I thought that was what the word queer or homosexual was for. No, queer means everything. Okay. What about homosexual? Because, you know, I thought... Homosexual is the same. Yeah, it's gay. Well...

Can we just agree on one thing? Can we not just have all these debates, but not eradicate the word woman? I can't believe I'm the one fighting this lonely battle for you women. I would argue that we need you on... Why is it on me?

We do need you on lots of other battles, I would rather you spend more time on. Just let women be women, let lesbians be lesbians. And whatever you're up to, whether you're a lesbian or a woman or a man, keep it uncensored. Good night. fight.