Poland has said it will not play the World Cup play-off against Russia in March since of the invasion of Ukraine.

The President of Poland’s Football Association, Cezary Kulesza, on Saturday, stated the choice was supported by the team’s players, including their star forward, Robert Lewandowski.

Kulesza said the association was in talks with its Swedish and Czech equivalents regarding the matches.

The winners of the match in between Sweden and the Czech Republic were expected to play the victors of the Russia v Poland game to identify who would get approved for the World Cup later on this year.

“No more words, time to act!” Kulesza tweeted.

“Due to the escalation of the hostility of the Russian Federation towards Ukraine, the Polish national team does not intend to play the play-off match against Russia.

“This is the just ideal decision. We remain in talks with the Swedish and Czech associations to bring forward a joint statement to FIFA.”

The Polish team in a separate statement stated although it’s not a simple choice, there are things more crucial than football.

The declaration checked out: “We, the players of the Polish nationwide group, together with the Polish Football Association, chose that as a result of Russia’s aggressiveness against Ukraine, we do not intend to play in the play-off match against Russia.

“It’s not an easy decision, but there are more crucial things in life than football. Our thoughts are with the Ukrainian nation and our pal from the nationwide group, Tomasz Kedziora, who is still in Kiev with his household.”