Roman Abromovich

jackdaw

Ive heard rumours that RA was telling Essien where to play in midfield ??

is this true ?? if he is going to have a say in tactics then Chelsea
truly are FU&*ED !!!

county

jackdaw wrote:

Ive heard rumours that RA was telling Essien where to play in midfield ??

is this true ?? if he is going to have a say in tactics then Chelsea
truly are FU&*ED !!!

do you honestly think its true?pub talk tbh

jackdaw

there was a guy, Peterman ? who bought Alaves in spain years back ..
he started like RA .. then he got involved in tactics .. look what happened them .. dropped like a stone!

arbeitsscheuer

Actually this is sort of true, according to The Observer at least (and, let's face it, that has a hell of a lot more veracity than mere 'pub talk' county :P)

Roman told Essien, using Andrei Shevchenko as a translator, to play his passes more to the wings than centrally against Rosenborg. Can't remember what else the Observer said he did, they had more detail than that but I seem to have mislaid my copy...

redspider

Chelsea are his plaything so he'll do as he wants to.

Whether there is any truth in what's suggested or not, who knows - it wouldnt surprise me one way or the other. It certainly could be true, and so could a lot more.

Overall, Abramovich has been 'good' for Chelsea because without him they (probably) wouldnt have won the league at all. But, having him as the sole owner also has its drawbacks. So Chelsea fans have to just live with it, or else vote with their feet. (Looks like some are already doing that!)

Redspider

Mitch Connor

Nah - apparently, afer the game against Rosenbourg, he was telloing essien he should have been playing balls out wide, as opposed to through the centre cause Rosenbourg had compacted the centre of the pitch.

Nowt too wrong with it imo - if you owned the club you supported, and saw them get a poor result, and had seen your star player play the wrong pass time and time again, you'd probably say it too him too.

Now, if he starts picking the team and tactics through Grant, there could be problems.

event

as tauren says, its not a big issue

he probably was just saying it after the game, "you should have passed it out wide etc"

nothing major

Savman

I heard a rumour Abramovich funded 9/11 and had a fling with Osama Bin Laden.

":rolleyes:"

leninbenjamin

it's a fair enough point to make i think. Chelsea are often too narrow and dont utilize the wingers enough. its a common theme everyone has been criticizing them of the past year.

i find all this kind of ironic though. often the criticism of MDs in companies say is that they are too removed from the floor and they don't really know what's going on yadda yadda... in all other business's bar football you might commend a MD who tries to take a hands on approach to sort out certain issues on the factory floor. but never in football.

I think people are reading too much into Abramovich's actions at Chelsea. at the start it seems he was quite happy to take a fairly removed role. i think it's just a case of him identifying problems or issues with the squad that his current staff are failing to address, and he's feels its better to do something rather than let it fester further. fair enough really, his company, who are we to judge?

Lex Luthor

so is Grant just his puppet until someone better becomes available and RA wants to have a go at sending out a team his way for a while and then apply for his coaching badges????

leninbenjamin

Lex Luthor wrote:

so is Grant just his puppet until someone better becomes available and RA wants to have a go at sending out a team his way for a while and then apply for his coaching badges????

puppet or friend from footballing circles whom abramovich seems to think he shares a footballing philosophy with, who might be worth a punt at the job in creating the breand RA wants to create, and seeing as no one else is readily available.... who knows, i'm just trying to get people being so cynical about the ongoings at Chelsea when they dont have the full picture... Abramovich knows more about running a company than anyone else on boards i'd wager so i'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt for the time being myself.

PDN

leninbenjamin wrote:

Abramovich knows more about running a company than anyone else on boards i'd wager so i'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt for the time being myself.

What makes you think Abramovich knows anything about running a company? He knows plenty about shady mafia-type deals, that's how he, like most Russian billionaires, made his money.

PHB

He has ran lots of successful companies if you look at his history at all. They are also lots of shady stuff in his past, but this doesn't mean he doesn't know how to run a company.

I think he is in an interesting situation, and one which is very interesting. As an intellect, there is no doubt that Ambrovomich is leagues ahead of nearly all the football managers in the world. In most cases, intellect means you can normally adapt to a situation and become very good at it pretty quickly. It's why consultants make a ****load of money, they come into a company, make it better, and then find a new company. Will this work in the case of football I don't know, but I'm really interested to find out. He obviously has a huge huge interest in football, and apparently watches a couple of matches a day. If he is as smart as he appears to be, and can apply that intelligence, maybe he will become one of the most, or perhaps the only, successful manager/owner in history. Of course, if football knowledge really is something that is gained after years and years, then he could fail massively. Personally, I'm looking forward to seeing what will happen.

Keith C

This has probably been put up already:

'Turncoat' Terry
By Duncan Castles - Sunday September 23, 2007. The Observer Newspaper.

Jose Mourinho's relationship with John Terry has broken down completely over the
Chelsea and England captain's central role in his departure from Stamford Bridge
last week. The Champions League-winning coach was replaced on Thursday by Avram
Grant, a former Israel national team coach with no experience of club management
outside his own country. According to many Chelsea sources, Grant will defer on
football matters to owner Roman Abramovich, who has already started to take a
hands-on role with the first team.

Mourinho holds Terry responsible for charges levelled by Chelsea's board of directors that he had lost the support of his playing staff after Tuesday's Champions League
draw with Rosenborg - a match that was followed by club owner Roman Abramovich
lecturing a senior professional on his on-field tactics behind Mourinho's back.
Half an hour before the Group B fixture, claims a dressing-room source, Terry told one of Mourinho's assistant coaches that he had 'things on my mind'. Only the intervention of a team-mate put him in the right state of mind to take part in the pre-match warm-up, for which Terry arrived late.

Midway through the first half Rosenborg scored, after Miika Koppinen beat Terry at a set piece. When Mourinho then directly criticised the centre back's defending at half time, Terry refused to accept responsibility for the goal or even to respond to his manager.

Earlier on Tuesday, Terry had been informed that Mourinho had gone to the club's medical department to ask whether there was any physical reason for the player's sub-standard performances in matches this season. Mourinho hoped to find an explanation for a significant decline in Terry's play following an operation to remove a disc from the defender's spine in December.

Chelsea chief executive Peter Kenyon was made aware of the dispute and, according to the dressing-room source, presented the information to an emergency board meeting on Wednesday as evidence that the manager had lost the trust of key players. The club subsequently asked Mourinho for his resignation, which he refused to tender, but ultimately settled on dismissal by 'mutual consent'. Later on Wednesday, Mourinho sent Terry a text message sarcastically thanking him for talking to the club's hierarchy.

On Friday, several first-team regulars apparently took their captain to task during a 50-minute team meeting called by Terry in the aftermath of Mourinho's dismissal. Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba and Florent Malouda are believed to have accused him of not doing enough to keep Mourinho at the club.

Terry is England's best-paid footballer after agreeing a five-year, £131,000-a-week contract this summer. In initial negotiations he had requested a 'limitless parity' clause to ensure he was the club's biggest earner for the duration of a proposed nine-year term. According to a Chelsea insider Terry also wanted - and was refused - a contractual option for him to manage the club at the end of his playing career.

As far-fetched as that request might be, Abramovich's actions in the aftermath of the Rosenborg draw were equally bizarre. In front of the entire Chelsea team, but while Mourinho was occupied with press conference duties, the Russian billionaire decided to hand out an impromptu tactics lesson to Michael Essien.

Employing striker Andriy Shevchenko as translator, he instructed midfielder Essien, player of the year last season, to hit passes wide rather than through central areas where the Norwegians had compressed play. Abramovich is expected to take an increasingly hands-on role in the team following the appointment of Grant to replace Mourinho and, according to several sources, will effectively select the side. In a press conference on Friday, Grant insisted he would not tolerate interference but declined to respond when
asked who was the most important individual at Chelsea. 'Look, the owner gives the financial support,' Grant said. 'I'm not going to make remarks.'

The 52-year-old is already the subject of significant discontent among a first-team squad predominantly still loyal to Mourinho. Grant, though, is confident he will bring not only more silverware to Chelsea but a more attractive brand of football and said on Friday that he had no problems with the playing staff. 'There's a very good relationship with the players,' he said. 'I like their attitude, how they want to win all the
time, even if the last result wasn't like that, but the relationship is good.'

Grant's first match comes at Old Trafford this afternoon, but he did not work yesterday for religious reasons. He must also wait for his Israeli coaching qualifications to be cleared by Uefa before he can be formally approved as a top-flight manager. Chelsea insist the process will be trouble-free.

Though Grant claimed that he had no 'plan to be the manager' until the appointment came about, he had begun requesting clearance from Uefa a fortnight ago.

According to Kenyon, the 'first-team coach' will be involved in all key areas of transfers and team building. He said: 'We are not embarking on the arbitrary buying of players and telling the coach to play them. Avram will be absolutely involved, responsible for picking the team and responsible for the results.'

Kenyon denied that Terry - who declined to comment last night - played any part in Mourinho's departure: 'There is absolutely nothing in stories that the dressing room has been lost. In particular there is no truth in any rumours that a bust-up with one or several of our players led to him leaving the club.'

'Tears, hugs and two icy handshakes'

Jose Mourinho's reign at Chelsea ended emotionally, with warm dressing-room embraces for 23 of his players - and a cold handshake for Andriy Shevchenko and skipper John Terry. His departure, though, was a long time coming.

Duncan Castles reports

Tuesday, 10pm, home dressing room, Stamford Bridge. Andriy Shevchenko is taking Michael Essien to task on his performance in the night's embarrassing 1-1 draw with Rosenborg. The former European footballer of the year tells Africa's finest midfielder that he tried to make too many passes through the centre of the Norwegians' formation where '70 percent of their players were'. Essien learns he should have been passing to the wings
'where they only had 30 percent of their men'.

Not the most insightful of tactical advice, but then these are not the thoughts of a Ukraine international, they are those of a Russian billionaire. Standing beside Shevchenko, tactics board in hand, Roman Abramovich is the man telling Essien how to play football. Shevchenko is merely there to translate. In another room, attending to the press, Mourinho is utterly unaware of his employer's actions.

Tuesday, 7:11pm, the home dressing room. Chelsea's squad of 18 are called out for their pre-match warm up. All the players step out for the carefully prepared drill - except one. John Terry remains sitting where he is. One of Jose Mourinho's assistants urges Terry out. Chelsea's captain refuses, swears, and, according to an eye witness, says he is upset and has 'things on my mind'. Terry is said to be furious after finding out that Mourinho had been asking in Chelsea's treatment room whether there was a medical
reason for his perceived loss of form over recent weeks. The stand-off continues until a team-mate cajoles his friend out on to the pitch.

The game starts, Chelsea quickly lose a goal at a free kick as Miika Koppinen stretches ahead of Terry to turn in a near-post cross. Chelsea go in at half time 1-0 down and Jose Mourinho takes his captain to task, blaming the defender for the deficit. Terry says nothing but all his team-mates can see the anger on his face.

The pair had once been the closest of footballing allies, but within 24 hours Mourinho is no longer Terry's manager as Chelsea agree to a £10.5 million pay-off to rid themselves of a man they describe as 'the most successful manager the club has known'.

'The relationship broke down not because of one detail or because of something that happened at a certain moment. It broke down over a period of time.' - Jose Mourinho, 21 September 2007.

To understand how the winner of two Premier League titles, two League Cups and one FA Cup, a man who averaged an unprecedented 2.33 points from his 120 Premiership games in just over three seasons, steadily became persona non grata at the club he made great, it is necessary to return to the summer of 2005.

'In Jose's first season everything was fine,' said a Chelsea employee who suffered the Abramovich guillotine long before the Portuguese. 'He came in, he won the title by miles, almost made the Champions League final, everyone was happy. But then it all began to go wrong. Peter Kenyon started thinking it was his genius as a chief executive that was important. Abramovich's mates were telling him his money had done it and any half-decent coach would win the league with those resources. They forgot that the most
important man at any club is the manager.'

That summer, Chelsea poached Tottenham Hotspur's sporting director Frank Arnesen at a cost of £5m. Ostensibly recruited to revolutionise the club's sub-standard youth ranks, the Dane was actually brought in on the recommendation of Piet de Visser, a well-known Dutch talent scout who had advised Abramovich on football matters from his first months as Chelsea owner.

Arnesen and De Visser, friends and allies from their time together at Dutch club PSV Eindhoven, steadily worked to influence Abramovich's thinking on the first team, and, most importantly, player recruitment. Along with the agents Soren Lerby, Vlado Lemeic and Pini Zahavi they sought to steer Abramovich towards the purchase of certain footballers. Their objective, according to one source, was 'to get to Abramovich's money. To do that they needed power at the club, needed a manager who would do what they wanted. Mourinho was not that manager.'

Thus emerged a power struggle in which Arnesen and others seemed to undermine Mourinho by questioning him at every opportunity. When Mourinho went to war with Uefa over the actions of referees they told Abramovich his coach was embarrassing the club. When Mourinho's team dourly won key matches by a goal to nil, they told the owner a better coach would win by more goals and bring him far more flamboyant football. When a Mourinho signing failed to perform on the pitch, they told Abramovich that better players could be found elsewhere.

Within a year, and despite Mourinho's success in claiming a second successive Premiership, the manager had lost control of transfers. In the 2006 summer window, Mourinho asked the board to buy Samuel Eto'o; they spent a UK record £30m on Shevchenko. Chelsea sold William Gallas to Arsenal against Mourinho's wishes, and forced the £7m Khalid Boulahrouz upon him, while Arnesen compounded the error of allowing Chelsea's most effective defender to leave the club by pulling the plug on the £5m purchase of Micah Richards. Inside a season Richards was a full England international, while Boulahrouz was stinking out the reserves until Chelsea paid Sevilla to take him off their hands.

At least Mourinho could easily leave the Dutch defender out of the first team. A personal friend of Abramovich's, Shevchenko played regardless of his performances, and those were usually awful. In his first 26 appearances for Chelsea, the Ukrainian striker scored five goals. His coaches and team-mates often felt as though Chelsea were playing with 10 men and Mourinho was faced with a problem - should he leave out the owner's pal or lose the faith of the rest of the team?

As January approached, Mourinho asked to be allowed to sign a new striker. The board refused. Mourinho asked for a centre-back to cover for Terry, then sidelined with a serious back problem. The board offered him a choice between Alex, a Brazilian bought via De Visser and 'parked' at PSV for two seasons, and Tal Ben Haim, a Zahavi client. Mourinho wanted neither.

Worse still, Chelsea's manager was instructed to sack one of his assistants and add the Israeli Avram Grant to his coaching staff. When he refused, the club descended into open warfare.

Mourinho dropped Shevchenko from his first team, leaking the story to a national newspaper in an open challenge to Abramovich to sack him. On an emotional afternoon at Stamford Bridge the manager first rallied his team around him, then sent them out to overrun Wigan 4-0. Long before kick-off the Chelsea supporters were chanting 'Stand up for the Special One' through standing ovation after standing ovation.

An infuriated Abramovich ceased attending games and instructed his advisors to find a replacement coach. Mourinho let it be known that he would leave, but only on payment of the outstanding value of his contract - about £28m comprising £5.2m per annum for three-and-a-half years and up to £10m in bonuses. In the meantime he kept winning matches, pushing his injury-hit squad to within a few games of a remarkable quadruple.

Ultimately Chelsea won the League Cup and the FA Cup, forcing Abramovich to reconcile with his manager. A consciously 'mellow' Mourinho promised to avoid conflict with opposing managers and football authorities, accepted restrictions on his transfer budget, and reshaped his team in a more flamboyant 4-4-2 formation. Fatefully, he also acceded to the appointment of Grant as Chelsea's director of football.

Though some in Mourinho's camp had Grant pinned as a 'Mossad Spy' from the off, the manager attempted to work with him, holding long meetings with him during the club's staggeringly positive pre-season US tour and letting it be known that he welcomed his arrival as a buffer against Arnesen and route to Abramovich. The early-season optimism, however, swiftly evaporated.

Grant began calling individual players aside to ask them questions.

'You look sad, why?' 'How do you feel in this position?' 'Is this the best place for you to play?' 'Are we using your abilities well?' Because many of them complained about this to Mourinho, the manager decided to cut back radically on team meetings, the only one this season having been arranged for the Jewish New Year when Grant had returned to Israel.

While Grant looked on at training, Shevchenko treated it with disdain. A morose, lonely figure around the camp, he seemed to show more interest in improving his golf swing than his shooting. As the first team prepared for their final pre-season friendly against Danish side Brondby, Shevchenko declared himself unfit with a back problem. A 2-0 victory ensured the £121,000-a-week striker was not missed, but Mourinho was bemused to
discover that Shevchenko's bad back had not prevented him from enjoying a round of golf at Sunningdale that day.

The board, though, were not interested and the club's descent continued. Other players began to realise what was happening, that the summer's peace was a false one, that their manager had no support from the top. 'The mentality became weaker and weaker,' said one insider. 'You could feel the team's strength sapping away.'

Mourinho knew his time at Chelsea was coming to an end. At Uefa's forum for elite coaches in Geneva a fortnight ago he allowed Premier League rivals an insight into his thinking. 'Mourinho said he loved Chelsea and he loved English football, but thought he would not stay for long,' said one coach. 'One of us asked him why. He wouldn't answer, but it was obvious something was seriously wrong.'

His next Champions League match brought the end. On Wednesday afternoon the board asked Mourinho to resign, citing his handling of Shevchenko, his attitude to authority and, crucially, his relationship with Terry as reasons why he should go. Mourinho refused to walk, and fought only to maximise his pay-off as Chelsea apparently threatened to call club employees to testify against him at any employment tribunal.

A £10.5m pay-off was agreed and the following morning Mourinho made a final trip to the training centre at Cobham to pick up his possessions and say goodbye to his squad. There was a message in each farewell. For most there was a Latin embrace and warm words of thanks. For Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard the emotions were so strong that both men were reduced to tears, Lampard retreating to the shower room in an attempt to hide his. For Shevchenko and Terry there was nothing but a handshake that, in the words of one observer, could have 'frozen a mug of tea'. No one was in any doubt about who he considered the true captains of his team.

Out with the old, in with the new. Furious at Mourinho's dismissal, senior players describe Grant's appointment as 'a disgrace'. Some at Cobham call him 'an idiot' and describe his coaching techniques as '25 years behind the times'. Abramovich pushes the Israeli around 'without a hint of respect'.

Former academy coach Brendan Rogers has been drafted in to help out with the first team, a promotion that may not be unconnected to the one-on-one training sessions he gave Abramovich's son. Only in Steve Clarke is there the level of football knowledge to deal with a squad full of international superstars. As the sole survivor of Mourinho's cadre of four assistant managers, the Scotsman has an unenviable task.

But then neither he nor Grant will be picking the team. As Michael Essien discovered on Tuesday night, the new manager of Chelsea is also the owner.

leninbenjamin

PHB wrote:

I think he is in an interesting situation, and one which is very interesting. As an intellect, there is no doubt that Ambrovomich is leagues ahead of nearly all the football managers in the world. In most cases, intellect means you can normally adapt to a situation and become very good at it pretty quickly. It's why consultants make a ****load of money, they come into a company, make it better, and then find a new company. Will this work in the case of football I don't know, but I'm really interested to find out. He obviously has a huge huge interest in football, and apparently watches a couple of matches a day. If he is as smart as he appears to be, and can apply that intelligence, maybe he will become one of the most, or perhaps the only, successful manager/owner in history. Of course, if football knowledge really is something that is gained after years and years, then he could fail massively. Personally, I'm looking forward to seeing what will happen.

i'm still not entirely convinced that Abramovich wants to be an owner manager. he wants some sort of input yes, but i'd wager that if a manager came in who could be successful while maintaining the footballing philosophy Abramovich seemingly wants he'd be happy to step back into the usual role of the owner he seemed to play initially. he simply wants people to go "WOW" when they watch Chelsea play, not "Boring, boring Chelsea". that seems to be the central issue here, why he was in the dressingroom, why he was trying to get Mourinho to work with certain players like Ballack and Sheva (and possibly Ronaldinho?) etc...

regardless only time will tell as to which side's speculation is right.

PDN wrote:

What makes you think Abramovich knows anything about running a company? He knows plenty about shady mafia-type deals, that's how he, like most Russian billionaires, made his money.

PHB makes a very good response to this. the questions are over how he acquired his money making assets in the first place. but you don't become and more importantly maintain your status as one of the world's richest men if you don't know what you're doing. if you apply the logic you used, then why aren't there more lotto winners in rich lists?

PDN

leninbenjamin wrote:

if you apply the logic you used, then why aren't there more lotto winners in rich lists?

Because most lotto winners aren't mobsters.

Also, the billions plundered from the Russian people after the break up of the Soviet Union easily dwarf even the biggest lotto wins in the world. Chelsea's success has been built upon the corpses of Russian children. If a similar character takes control at Arsenal then I will burn my scarf & dismiss my beloved Gunners from my memory.

growler

PDN wrote:

Because most lotto winners aren't mobsters.

Chelsea's success has been built upon the corpses of Russian children. .

people win the lotto through luck, not any form of business acumen, lotto winner does not equal intelligent. Pointless point.

Can you point to all (or even one) the child corpses please? drama queen. :rolleyes:

_blank_

PDN wrote:

If a similar character takes control at Arsenal then I will burn my scarf & dismiss my beloved Gunners from my memory.

You better get the matches out.

Alisher Usmanov is a convicted criminal and billionaire Russian oligarch.

Just how 'shady' does the major shareholder have to be to make you burn that scarf?

PHB

Hey, I think Ambrovomich is as bad as most oligarchs, not the worst of them, but most of them. That said, doesn't mean I'm gona dismiss his talents.

growler

I guess any football fan is guilty of thinking that the current tactics being used by your team could be improved upon, every terrace / pub / living room/ football forum is full of the likes of us every weekend shouting / typing what we think is a better way to do things, bemoaning poor marking, crossing , shots, passes, tackles etc.

We just don't happen to own a team, and if we did not a single one of us would be able to stop ourselves making suggestions.

Nunu

DesF wrote:

You better get the matches out.

Alisher Usmanov is a convicted criminal and billionaire Russian oligarch.

Just how 'shady' does the major shareholder have to be to make you burn that scarf?

....he's also been accused of rape:eek:

AnCapaillMor

Nunu wrote:

....he's also been accused of rape:eek:

And supplying weapons to chechneans, taking heroin and selling it on as payment. Besides that he's an all round nice guy.

leninbenjamin

then PDN you should stop supporting Arsenal already. you do realise he is now the second largest shareholdeer of the club? over one fifth of Arsenal's profits will be lining his coffers?

Pepe LeFrits

leninbenjamin wrote:

then PDN you should stop supporting Arsenal already. you do realise he is now the second largest shareholdeer of the club? over one fifth of Arsenal's profits will be lining his coffers?

Arsenal don't pay dividends on their shares so unless he gets control and changes that, that is simply wrong.

leninbenjamin

Pepe LeFrits wrote:

Arsenal don't pay dividends on their shares so unless he gets control and changes that, that is simply wrong.

really? never knew that. my mistake.

Pepe LeFrits

No worries. Personally I'll always support Arsenal regardless who owns them but I am extremely unhappy with Dein for bringing this crook onboard. I can only hope that the board can resist the Russian long term so that he gives up on a complete take-over and sells the shares on to someone more suitable (at a large profit for himself, obviously).

pickarooney

I don't get this Shevchenko translating business. Does Sheva speak French, or Essien Italian or are we supposed to believe a (criminal?) billionaire mastermind at the helm of an international cabal of superstar egos hasn't got enough English to say 'spread it a bit wider, son' to his bulwark midfielder?

What did he use to fire Mourinho, or appoint his successor - mime? Perhaps he was deliberately misquoted by Shylockian middle-men who turned his words of effusive praise for the Special One into scathing criticism of one of the game's most cunning tacticians for their own twisted gain?

_blank_

pickarooney wrote:

I don't get this Shevchenko translating business. Does Sheva speak French, or Essien Italian or are we supposed to believe a (criminal?) billionaire mastermind at the helm of an international cabal of superstar egos hasn't got enough English to say 'spread it a bit wider, son' to his bulwark midfielder?

What did he use to fire Mourinho, or appoint his successor - mime? Perhaps he was deliberately misquoted by Shylockian middle-men who turned his words of effusive praise for the Special One into scathing criticism of one of the game's most cunning tacticians for their own twisted gain?

*applause*

A Shakespeare reference on the Soccer forum. Brilliant.

leninbenjamin

DesF wrote:

*applause*

A Shakespeare reference on the Soccer forum. Brilliant.

who? is Shakespeare a Chelsea prospect or something?

Pepe LeFrits

sounds african

growler

isn't there one of those "card things" for this kind of occasion? No 77 "use of Shakesperian reference in a soccer thread" things?

there should be.

_blank_

This whole incident is much ado about nothing tbh.

iregk

Got to love that post pickarooney. Quality.

I find it funny how many football fans seem to think RA is the only person in football with somewhat dirty money. Yes his initial income was made in shady ways but his accumulation since is through very good and shrewd business means.

Secondly is everyone else in the prem squeaky clean? As we have seen the Arsenal fan has already been seriously taken down a peg or two. Back in your box kid.

So the head guy in Tesco lets say buys Liverpool. Now most of us know the shady, corrupt dealings of Tesco but this will be ok with the fans as well Tesco are english and didn't make their money from Russian oil!!! Look at your own clubs and into your own boards money before attacking Chelsea. The only difference is, its more common knowledge where Romans came from.

PDN

iregk wrote:

Secondly is everyone else in the prem squeaky clean? As we have seen the Arsenal fan has already been seriously taken down a peg or two. Back in your box kid.

Which Arsenal fan?

If you are referring to me then you are way off base. The reason I posted about the possibility of burning my scarf was because of the danger of Usmanov trying to do an Abramovich at Arsenal. If that happens then I will never watch another Arsenal game again. Dirty money is dirty money, but to compare Tesco with what went down in Russia after the collapse of communism is like comparing a Sunday School picnic to Rwanda.

bullpost

I wouldn't base my support for a club on who owns the club. Owners come and go, as do players - the club is the most important thing and hopefully will be around for a long time. I don't particularily like Abramovich but I know that his ownership of chelsea will not be forever and hopefully the club will continue when it ends.

raven136

iregk wrote:

Got to love that post pickarooney. Quality.


So the head guy in Tesco lets say buys Liverpool. Now most of us know the shady, corrupt dealings of Tesco but this will be ok with the fans as well Tesco are english and didn't make their money from Russian oil!!! Look at your own clubs and into your own boards money before attacking Chelsea. The only difference is, its more common knowledge where Romans came from.

isnt he involeved with everton and their proposed move out of the city to the outskirts?

raven136

iregk wrote:

Got to love that post pickarooney. Quality.


So the head guy in Tesco lets say buys Liverpool. Now most of us know the shady, corrupt dealings of Tesco but this will be ok with the fans as well Tesco are english and didn't make their money from Russian oil!!! Look at your own clubs and into your own boards money before attacking Chelsea. The only difference is, its more common knowledge where Romans came from.

isnt he involved with everton and their proposed move out of the city to the outskirts?

justfortherecor

Those Observer articles by Duncan Castles are brilliant to read. John Terry has come out of all this badly, and rightly so. The guy is repugnant. £131k a week and demanding parity with any future top earners at the club for the next 9 years?!! Also trying to get a clause to become involved in managing the club when he finishes?

Delusional and extremely arrogant. I wonder how Chelsea fans will view their captain now that Mourinho is gone.

astrofool

People forget that Terry was on the verge of jumping ship due to wage disputes before Abramovich took over, he's more a Ferdinand than a Carragher or Neville.

~Rebel~

astrofool wrote:

he's more a Ferdinand than a Carragher or Neville.

good way of putting it

V9

I just gotta take my hat off to using the term "bulwark midfielder" to discribe Essien. Quality.

AnCapaillMor

Just heard a mad one, a cab driver who knows one of the coach drivers, said Dennis Wise was being strongly considered as next manager, can't picture him as a Roman puppet, he'd bite Romans hand off. sounds daft to me.

_blank_

AnCapaillMor wrote:

a cab driver

:eek:


Jaysis, I don't know how it works, but either taxi men get all their stories from the sun, or taxi drivers write stories for the sun.

Denis Wise?

rofl.