And Roman Abramovich, the owner of Chelsea, announced, on Saturday, that he had handed over the management and care of the club to the charitable trustees of the club, according to a statement published by the European champion.
In a statement on the London club’s official website, Abramovich said: “During nearly 20 years of ownership of Chelsea, I have always looked to my role as a goalkeeper for the club, whose mission is to ensure our success as we are today, in addition to building for the future and playing a positive role in our communities.”
He continued: “Decisions have always been taken with the interest of the club in mind above all else. I remain committed to these values. That is why today I give the Chelsea Foundation Trustees the management and care of Chelsea FC.”
And the Russian billionaire concluded: “I think that they are currently in the best position to take care of the interests of the club, the players, the staff and the fans,” according to “AFP”.
It is expected that Abramovich, whose fortune is estimated at $ 14 billion, according to “Forbes”, and took over Chelsea’s ownership in 2003, took this decision in order to protect Chelsea in light of possible sanctions on Russian influencers with the escalation of the war in Ukraine.
Just as Abramovich avoided commenting on the war his country is waging on Ukraine, Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel made statements in which he did not address or criticize what is happening in Ukraine, as he called on his players to “focus on sports and not get involved in politics.”
Chelsea technical advisor Petr Cech also avoided condemning the Russian military operation, in an interview with “Sky Sports”, and only said: “Going into such matters is a distraction for the players. We as a club have to prepare for matches and play normally.”
These reactions sparked criticism on the communication sites, in which Manchester United legend Gary Neville, who criticized Chelsea’s statement and its approach to dealing with the Ukrainian crisis, describing it as a “coward”, according to the British newspaper, “Daily Star”.
Besides Neville, former England star Jamie Carragher criticized Chelsea’s statement, saying: “The club embarrassed itself with this statement. They did not handle it well.”