Taking on the European champions should be a highlight for any player, but for Nicole Kozlova the occasion is also bittersweet. The Ukraine forward would love to host the upcoming World Cup qualifier in Kyiv, but the ongoing Russian invasion makes that impossible. The game will be played in Antalya, Turkey — more than four years since Ukraine last staged an international on home soil.
“Anger,” Kozlova tells Sky Sports when asked how she feels about being unable to play in front of home fans. “It’s unfair for the players, it’s unfair for the country. But we are grateful that we are able to play and still be able to represent our country.”
Many players accept the situation without complaint, she says, reflecting a wider Ukrainian attitude: life goes on despite serious difficulties. Kozlova highlights the practical hardships — a harsh winter, limited electricity — and the personal toll when teammates live in the capital and have family or friends on the frontlines. “There’s always someone in a worse situation than you,” she adds.
Kozlova, born in Canada, now plays for Glasgow City, having moved from Vorskla Poltava in 2024. She spoke to Sky Sports at Glasgow City’s training base, but most of the Ukraine squad continue to live and play in Ukraine. Adjusting to disrupted facilities has been necessary: “For example, the club I was at, they [Russia] actually hit one of our training facilities just a couple of weeks ago, so now that field is not in use. But life goes on and the league goes on.”
Her own experiences include times without water or power at home, with players showering at stadiums because those facilities had running water. Matches are regularly interrupted by air raid sirens. “A 90-minute football game often led to being a five-hour football game because any time there was an air siren, we had to pause to go inside to shelter,” she explains. Many fixtures are scheduled for late morning to reduce the likelihood of sirens: “Most games started purposefully at 11am or 12pm because there’d be fewer air sirens and you’d have time to finish the game.”
Kozlova says it can be hard to convey the reality of living under attack to people who haven’t experienced it. “You don’t know it until you hear the first explosion. You really don’t know what it feels like, but you just want them to know what’s happening,” she says. The initial reaction is fear, she adds, followed by an assessment of how close the strike was.
Ukraine last hosted an international in 2021; since then, home fixtures have taken place at neutral venues. Travel out of the country is arduous and time-consuming. Kozlova outlines the journey many players must make: reach Kyiv, endure a lengthy train ride — often around 15 hours with multi-hour waits at the border — then a flight to the match location, frequently leaving at midnight. “So it takes at least 24 hours and every trip is like that. They’re kind of used to it now, but I know it never gets easier.”
Ukraine face a challenging 2027 World Cup qualifying group that includes Spain, England and Iceland. Only the group winner will qualify directly for the tournament in Brazil; the remaining teams will enter a play-off system. It was also announced that Ukraine’s away match against England in June will be played at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Despite the uncertainty, Kozlova speaks of a powerful sense of purpose when wearing the national shirt. “We’re playing for something a bit more than just yourself now. When we are stepping onto that pitch, we’re always reminding ourselves who we’re playing for and what we’re playing for,” she says. The team does not use the circumstances as an excuse and strives for results.
Kozlova hopes she will be on the pitch the day international football finally returns to Ukraine. “I’d probably be speechless,” she says. Hearing the national anthem and singing together already evokes strong emotions of home; to do that on home soil, perhaps with her family present, would be extraordinary. “I think it would be the best game you’ll ever see us play,” she adds, while expressing the wider hope that the war will end soon. For now, playing home fixtures in Turkey, Poland or wherever possible has become a new normal, but the priority remains an end to the conflict so that Ukraine can play at home again.