It seemed like this was played on the moon, at any rate.

Obviously it wasn’t, just in case you were wondering. And there were no Clangers at this game. Honest. I went looking.

Ukraine Premier League (UPL) has been played behind closed doors since Russia’s invasion in February last year.

For Shakhtar, effectively evicted from Donetsk in 2014, it’s been life on the road ever since.

They’re back in Lviv after a few years away. At this pretty ugly venue near the edge of the city.

Lviv is wonderful. Vibrant, colourful, a culture vulture’s dream of a city. Cobbled streets, historic with a capital ‘h’. Even in the midst of war.

Five miles south and Arena Lviv isn’t wonderful. Barely 15 years old, it hardly gets used and the big side in Lviv – Karpaty – have only played five games here, according to Wikipedia, which says the stadium cost 211m euros to build. Too expensive. It’s 2,000 drivna to hire I’m told. About £420.

Courtesy of being a member of His Majesty’s press, chancer hacks can apply to get in, so I did.

Wannabe Lewis Hamiltons raring to rev up their skills meant the go-kart track next to it was more popular on Saturday.

Shakhtar’s Champions League games are in Hamburg this season. UPL matches are in Ukraine so there is plenty of to-ing and fro-ing as the team can’t fly in and out of the country.

Lviv, out west, is the best option. Unfortunately a rather soulless option but that’s Putin’s fault.

It started with a minute’s silence for a fallen Shakhtar supporter.

Obviously, death is all around. Earlier in the day, hundreds of people attended the funeral of two soldiers at a packed Catholic church in the centre. The priests’ singing was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever heard.

Many football fans have been behind the 2014 Maidan revolution that overthrew Russian stooge Yanukovych, and they are still dying.

This chap was the only soldier at the game. There were barely 50 people spectating. Perhaps a handful at most journalists. Couple of girlfriends.

Most importantly, data inputter/scout Viktor, a former university basketball coach who pointed out my name to people on the gate who were about to exclude me, was present. He was more interesting than the game.

Various stuff he told me that stuck:

• Lviv has had a bomb-free September.
• Obolon were promoted in the summer on the back of a string of 1-0 wins.
• This was Shakhtar’s first game of the season in Lviv.
• Last year refugees from Mariupol lived in the stadium, in tents.
• They had to leave when games were played there by Rukh Lviv and FC Lviv.

As for the game, obviously it was one of the weirdest I’ve attended and after more than 150 Wales games that bar is so high you’d need the Hubble telescope to spot it.

Obolon defender Artom Vovkun was sent off for two bookable offences after about 33 minutes.

That triggered a resolute and impressive rearguard action that didn’t involve multiple fouls/cynicism.

In fact Obolon nearly went 1-0 up early in the second half.

All the atmosphere came from the farty karties outside roaring round the track in their motors.

Viktor’s suspicion that a penalty would come Shakhtar’s way after about 75 minutes proved unfounded as a goal was scored by Ehor Nazaryna, sparing the ref any difficult decisions.

Stattos might like to decipher this and practise their Ukrainian.

Thanks to Shakhtar press office, Viktor and Zorya Londonsk twitterman!