Vorskla: Arsenal clash uncertain due to late venue switch

The vice-president of Ukrainian club Vorskla Poltava isn't sure Thursday's match against Arsenal, which was relocated to Kiev, will go ahead.

UEFA decided to move the Europa League contest to the Ukrainian capital after the government introduced martial law in areas of the eastern European nation.

Oleh Lysak has yet to receive confirmation that Kiev's Olympic Stadium will host the match, and expressed his dismay at the decision. He said the city of Poltava isn't one of the areas affected.

"For the honorary president (Kostyantyn Zhevago), it's a puzzle why Sporting and Qarabag could travel and stay here, but Arsenal can't," Lysak said, according to The Associated Press. "Of course, there are subjective and objective reasons related to martial law, but we are not a region which has come under martial law order."

The Olympic Stadium is nearly 350 kilometers away from Vorskla's home base in Poltava.

Ukrainian lawmakers declared martial law for 30 days after Russia seized three Ukrainian naval ships and 23 sailors. President Petro Poroshenko warned his country of the "extremely serious" threat of invasion by Russian forces, according to Reuters' Andrew Osborn and Natalia Zinets.

Arsenal players and staff already boarded their plane to Kyiv at London's Luton Airport by the time Lysak made his plea.