Darijo Srna, Shakhtar's captain lends a helping hand to children in war torn Donetsk

The 20 tonnes of tangerine that will be delivered to the children in Donetsk

Darijo Srna might not go down as one of the greatest footballers of all time. But, he certainly has staked a claim to be arguably one of the greatest human beings to ever grace the footballing field.

Football as is not a mere sport. Its something that, since its inception has gone on to transcend borders, races and sects. Football is termed the beautiful game for a multitude of reasons. One such reason was served on a platter to us by Srna’s brilliant gesture of sending 20 tonnes of tangarines for the children in war torn Donetsk, according to reports.

Conflicts in the Eastern regions of Ukraine has so far forced Shakhtar to play their their home games at western Ukrainian city of Lviv, which is about 1,200 miles from their traditional home; the Donbass Arena. The Arena itself has been the target of heavy borbardment in the past few months.

The club may have transferred their training grounds and headquarters to Kiev in order to escape the volatile region, but they certainly haven’t forgotten their roots and people that make the club special. Thus, the club along with their captain, Croation international Darijo Srna have orchastrated a drive that will deliver the tangerines to the 23,000 odd children that are reportedly locked in the war-torn region from Srna’s hometown in Croatia. The initative is said to be a part of the “Let’s Help Children” campaign.

The cartons of Tangerine will each have some greeting cards with a special message from Darijo Srna.

The club in a statement released to the official website said:

“The captain of Shakhtar [Srna] repeatedly said this: For all 11 years he’s played in Donetsk, he constantly feels the support of the fans.

“Now, the time has come for Darijo to support the Donetsk citizens himself, making his contribution to the “Let’s Help Children” project carried out by the Humanitarian Centre of Rinat Akhmetov.

“For the children who have found themselves in the war-zone, Srna bought 20 tonnes of tangerines in Croatia and covered the delivery costs (to Donetsk).

“The lorries carrying the fruit bought in Darijo’s hometown, Metkovi?, have already arrived in Donetsk.

“On November 11th, students in Budyonovskyi and Proletarskyi districts started receiving the present from the captain of Shakhtar.

“Until the end of the week, the sets of tangerines will be delivered to schools across the city.

“The gifts from Srna will be received by 23,143 primary school students – that is absolutely all the kids currently present in Donetsk.

“Besides, Darijo passed a special greeting card to every child.”