Ukraine to play Borussia Monchengladbach in World Cup play-off warm-up

KYIV: Ukraine will play a friendly game with German club Borussia Monchengladbach on May 11, the country's football association announced on Friday, in a warm-up ahead of their 2022 World Cup play-off against Scotland. The fixture with Scotland was rearranged at the request of Ukraine from March 24 to June 1 following the Russian invasion.

"The Ukrainian Football Association (UAF) has reached an agreement with Borussia Monchengladbach to hold a control match with Ukraine's national team on May 11," it said in a statement. The association said the game, the kick-off time of which will be agreed later, will take place at the Borussia Park in Monchengladbach.

The Ukraine national team "express their gratitude" to Borussia for the opportunity to host the game, which is an "important element" in preparing the side for the 2022 World Cup playoffs, the UAF said. Ukrainian football clubs decided this week to put an end to the season that has been suspended after Russia launched its bloody invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

Ukraine plan to start their preparation for the World Cup playoffs on May 2 abroad, in a training camp in Slovenia, as their home country's infrastructure has been threatened by Russian bombing. The match against the Foals is only the first agreed friendly ahead of play-off with Scotland as Ukraine struggle to find warm-up partners in a tightly-knit international calendar.

The winners of the match at Hampden Park in Glasgow will play Wales on June 5 in Cardiff for a spot at this year's finals in Qatar.