Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has explained why he will not feature for Georgia at the upcoming Under-21 European Championships, despite being fully eligible and his nation being named as one of the tournament’s co-hosts along with Romania.
The national youth side had hoped that the 22-year-old, who was recently crowned as the MVP of Serie A for the 2022-23 season, would be able to represent them in the tournament, which kicks off with Georgia’s game against Portugal on June 21.
However, Kvaratskhelia has also been named in the senior side set to face Cyprus and Scotland in the Euro 2024 qualifiers on June 17 and 20 respectively.
In a long post on his official facebook page on Thursday, Kvaratskhelia explained that, despite his initial desire to play, the turnaround to get back to Georgia from Scotland within the space of 24 hours and play again is too tight a turnaround.
Napoli’s mercurial winger also noted that the 2022-23 season had been the longest of his career to date, but also confirmed that he will be the team’s “biggest fan” heading into the tournament next week.
His statement read: “It’s an honour to be part of the extended squad that will play for the European Championships in a few days. After the longest season of my life, it’s hard to play in such a highly respected competition again with such a short turnaround.
“That’s why I want my fans to be aware of my position. Despite my desire to play, and after a difficult season for sporting reasons, I will still be with you at the U21 European Championships, and I will be the biggest fan of our team.
“Now I am fully focused on the games ahead of the Georgian national team against Cyprus and Scotland. I would like to wish good luck to everyone, my teammates, the wider team, coaching staff and the whole of Georgia for the youth championship.”