Kiev - Ukrainian border police on Thursday arrested four CSKA Moscow supporters attempting to enter the country illegally on foot to attend their team's UEFA Cup match at Shakhtar Donetsk.

News reports said that the CSKA fans were detained near the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, some 400 metres from the international frontier, and charged with illegal border crossing.

The four had intended to bypass Russian and Ukrainian border checkpoints, as two of the fans lacked passports, and the other two did not want to desert their mates, said Dmitry Horkoltsev, a Ukraine border troops spokesman.

One detainee carrying a Russian army draft registration card, and a second a Xerox of his passport, as identification documents, were not permitted into Ukraine by Russian border police.

The four then decided to walk across the Russo-Ukrainian border on foot bypassing the checkpoint, but were detained by Ukrainian cops on the other side of the border.

"They said that they had to be at their team's game, come what may," Horkoltsev told the Interfax news agency.

The UEFA Cup round of 16 second leg match in Donetsk was scheduled for later Thursday, with CSKA leading 1-0 from the first game in Russia last week. (dpa)