Roman Abramovich has decided to sell Chelsea.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Russian-Israeli businessman announced his decision to sell the London club, which he purchased in 2003.
Abramovich has said his decision is "in the best interest of the club", as it comes against the backdrop of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has put him under intense scrutiny.
The 55-year-old oligarch has been photographed with Russian president Vladimir Putin in the past, and while it was claimed last week that Abramovich has no involvement in politics, a spokesperson for the Blues' owner suggested to the Press Association on Monday that he was "trying to help" achieve a peaceful resolution to the conflict.
Russian businesses and high-profile individuals have been hit with crippling financial sanctions by nations all over the world since the attack began last Thursday, and there have been calls in the United Kingdom for Abramovich to be targeted next.
Should Abramovich secure a sale, he leaves Chelsea as a footballing superpower...
The trophies
Chelsea have won 19 major trophies since Abramovich bought the club, with the Blues succeeding in every single available competition at least once.
Their haul includes five Premier League titles (2004-05, 2005-06, 2009-10, 2014-15, 2016-17) and two Champions League triumphs (2011-12, 2020-21).
The Blues have won the FA Cup on five occasions since 2003, last doing so in 2018, while they have added a further three EFL Cup titles to their honours list, too.
Chelsea's success in Europe has not just been restricted to the Champions League. They won the Europa League in 2012-13 and 2018-19, and the Super Cup last year.
February brought Club World Cup glory for the first time, completing the set under Abramovich.
Since the owner arrived in 2003, Chelsea have accumulated 1,449 points in the Premier League, more than any other side.
Of the 709 top-flight games during Abramovich's ownership so far, they have won 432, drawn 153 and lost 124, scoring 1,309 goals and conceding 621 for a hugely impressive goal difference of 688.
The managers
Chelsea have flitted through managers during Abramovich's tenure. Indeed, current incumbent Thomas Tuchel is the 15th different coach (including caretakers and interims) to work at Stamford Bridge since 2003.
After dismissing Claudio Ranieri in 2004, Abramovich landed a superstar manager in Jose Mourinho, who would go on to lead Chelsea to their first top-flight crown since 1955 and defend the title the following season.
Mourinho's first stint really was special. He won 124 games, losing just 21 times, and turned Chelsea from pretenders into a true superpower. Of any permanent manager during Abramovich's ownership, the Portuguese's first spell produced the best win ratio (67 per cent).
Yet past success means little as soon as things turn sour for Abramovich, and Mourinho was replaced in 2007-08. His successor, Avram Grant, led Chelsea to their first Champions League final, but John Terry's penalty shoot-out slip proved costly.
Luiz Felipe Scolari proved a bust but Guus Hiddink, in his first, more successful interim spell, subsequently delivered FA Cup joy in 2009, and a 72.7 per cent win rate from his 22 matches in charge (16 victories).
Carlo Ancelotti was next through the door. He claimed a Premier League and FA Cup double in 2009-10, while Roberto Di Matteo secured the club's first Champions League title with a penalty shoot-out defeat of Bayern Munich.
Mourinho's return yielded a fourth Premier League success, but the Special One's second spell deteriorated quickly and he was sacked in December 2015 with Chelsea sitting 16th. Hiddink came in for a second interim spell but won just 10 out of 27 matches (a 37 per cent win ratio).
Chelsea won a trophy in each season under Antonio Conte and Maurizio Sarri. Club great Frank Lampard was given the job in 2019 but lasted just 18 months, finishing with the lowest win ratio of any permanent Chelsea boss under Abramovich (52.4 per cent). Tuchel took the same side to Champions League glory.
The players
Superstar managers must have superstar players to manage, and Chelsea have certainly had their fair share of those during Abramovich's time at Stamford Bridge.
Lampard made 354 league appearances from 2003 to his departure in 2014, scoring 136 goals, but John Terry tops the top-flight appearances list during Abramovich's reign, with 411.
Petr Cech was arguably the best goalkeeper in world football in his prime, and he ranks third on that list (333), while current captain Cesar Azpilicueta will go down as a club great, even if he will never be considered among world football's true elite.
Eden Hazard scored 85 league goals in 245 games across his seven years with the Blues. Michael Essien was a superb player for Chelsea after joining in 2005, while Claude Makelele, signed in 2003, was crucial to Mourinho's initial success.
Only Lampard scored more goals than Didier Drogba (104), though Diego Costa was brilliant in Mourinho's second spell. Jorginho, Antonio Rudiger, Edouard Mendy and N'Golo Kante have proved superb signings in recent years.
There have been flops, perhaps none more so than Fernando Torres, while the world-record fee for a goalkeeper splashed out on Kepa Arrizabalaga does not seem so wise and Timo Werner has struggled since his move from Germany in 2020. Romelu Lukaku could well be added to that list if he does not discover his best form.
A closer look at how managers to lead both Chelsea and Tottenham have fared
Mauricio Pochettino’s appointment at Chelsea on a two-year contract continues the strong managerial connection between the Blues and Tottenham.
The Argentinian becomes the fifth man to manage both clubs in the Premier League era and here, the PA news agency looks at the records of his predecessors.
Glenn HoddleChelsea 1993-96: P157, W53 (33.7 per cent), D54, L50
Tottenham 2001-03: P104, W41 (38.3 per cent), D18, L45
The long-time Spurs midfielder finished his career as Chelsea player-manager for two seasons before a third solely in the dugout. His sides never finished higher than 11th in the league but reached an FA Cup final, losing 4-0 to Manchester United, and semi-final as well as a Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final.
After spells with England and Southampton, he took charge at White Hart Lane with similar results to his Chelsea spell – Spurs reached a League Cup final, losing to Blackburn, but finished ninth and 10th in the league before he was sacked six games into the next season.
Andre Villas-BoasChelsea 2011-12: P40, W19 (47.5 per cent), D11, L10
Tottenham 2012-13: P80, W44 (55.0 per cent), D20 L16
After their success with Jose Mourinho, Chelsea once again turned to Porto to recruit Villas-Boas, who had worked as part of Mourinho’s staff. He was unable to work similar magic as manager, lasting just 40 games and less than a season in the role.
He lasted twice as long at Spurs but narrowly missed out on Champions League qualification in his first season and was dismissed with the club lying seventh shortly before Christmas in his second, having failed to make the most of the then-world record fee received for Gareth Bale’s move to Real Madrid and lost 6-0 to Manchester City and 5-0 to Liverpool in his last five league games in charge.
Jose MourinhoChelsea 2004-07, 2013-15: P321, W204 (63.6 per cent), D69, L48
Tottenham 2019-21: P86, W44 (51.2 per cent), D19, L23
Announcing himself as a “Special One”, Mourinho lived up to that billing in his first spell at Stamford Bridge with back-to-back league titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups. His unbeaten home record in the league lasted 77 games in all and into his second spell, when he won the Premier League and League Cup for a third time each.
After another League Cup and a Europa League with Manchester United, Spurs banked on Mourinho as Pochettino’s replacement to end a trophy drought amounting to a solitary League Cup since 1991. With Spurs finishing sixth and then seventh in the league, though, Mourinho was sacked just days before his chance to bring silverware in the 2021 League Cup final – which Manchester City won 1-0 against a team led by caretaker manager Ryan Mason.
Antonio ConteChelsea 2016-18: P106, W69 (65.1 per cent), D17, L20
Tottenham 2021-23: P77, W41 (53.2 per cent), D12, L24*
Conte brought a Premier League title and an FA Cup to Chelsea, but was sacked after they finished only fifth in the league in his second season.
His volatile style never meshed easily with Tottenham and his exit in March, railing at “selfish players” and Tottenham’s “story” of failing to win trophies, has left them still searching for a permanent successor, Mason again at the helm after Conte’s assistant Cristian Stellini was remarkably sacked as interim manager.
(*includes 3-0 loss to Rennes by forfeit in Europa Conference League, December 2021)
Mauricio PochettinoTottenham 2014-19: P293, W159 (54.3 per cent), D62, L72
Chelsea: appointed 2023
Unlike the other names on this list, Pochettino moves to Chelsea having first managed Tottenham rather than the other way round.
He took Spurs to the 2019 Champions League final, where they lost to Liverpool, and his return was widely craved by sections of their fanbase – any notable success at Chelsea will therefore be all the more painful for their London rivals.
A closer look at how the four bosses to lead both Chelsea and Tottenham fared
Mauricio Pochettino’s appointment at Chelsea on a two-year contract continues the strong managerial connection between the Blues and Tottenham.
The Argentinian becomes the fifth man to manage both clubs in the Premier League era and here, the PA news agency looks at the records of his predecessors.
Glenn HoddleChelsea 1993-96: P157, W53 (33.7 per cent), D54, L50
Tottenham 2001-03: P104, W41 (38.3 per cent), D18, L45
The long-time Spurs midfielder finished his career as Chelsea player-manager for two seasons before a third solely in the dugout. His sides never finished higher than 11th in the league but reached an FA Cup final, losing 4-0 to Manchester United, and semi-final as well as a Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final.
After spells with England and Southampton, he took charge at White Hart Lane with similar results to his Chelsea spell – Spurs reached a League Cup final, losing to Blackburn, but finished ninth and 10th in the league before he was sacked six games into the next season.
Andre Villas-BoasChelsea 2011-12: P40, W19 (47.5 per cent), D11, L10
Tottenham 2012-13: P80, W44 (55.0 per cent), D20 L16
After their success with Jose Mourinho, Chelsea once again turned to Porto to recruit Villas-Boas, who had worked as part of Mourinho’s staff. He was unable to work similar magic as manager, lasting just 40 games and less than a season in the role.
He lasted twice as long at Spurs but narrowly missed out on Champions League qualification in his first season and was dismissed with the club lying seventh shortly before Christmas in his second, having failed to make the most of the then-world record fee received for Gareth Bale’s move to Real Madrid and lost 6-0 to Manchester City and 5-0 to Liverpool in his last five league games in charge.
Jose MourinhoChelsea 2004-07, 2013-15: P321, W204 (63.6 per cent), D69, L48
Tottenham 2019-21: P86, W44 (51.2 per cent), D19, L23
Announcing himself as a “Special One”, Mourinho lived up to that billing in his first spell at Stamford Bridge with back-to-back league titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups. His unbeaten home record in the league lasted 77 games in all and into his second spell, when he won the Premier League and League Cup for a third time each.
After another League Cup and a Europa League with Manchester United, Spurs banked on Mourinho as Pochettino’s replacement to end a trophy drought amounting to a solitary League Cup since 1991. With Spurs finishing sixth and then seventh in the league, though, Mourinho was sacked just days before his chance to bring silverware in the 2021 League Cup final – which Manchester City won 1-0 against a team led by caretaker manager Ryan Mason.
Antonio ConteChelsea 2016-18: P106, W69 (65.1 per cent), D17, L20
Tottenham 2021-23: P77, W41 (53.2 per cent), D12, L24*
Conte brought a Premier League title and an FA Cup to Chelsea, but was sacked after they finished only fifth in the league in his second season.
His volatile style never meshed easily with Tottenham and his exit in March, railing at “selfish players” and Tottenham’s “story” of failing to win trophies, has left them still searching for a permanent successor, Mason again at the helm after Conte’s assistant Cristian Stellini was remarkably sacked as interim manager.
(*includes 3-0 loss to Rennes by forfeit in Europa Conference League, December 2021)
Mauricio PochettinoTottenham 2014-19: P293, W159 (54.3 per cent), D62, L72
Chelsea: appointed 2023
Unlike the other names on this list, Pochettino moves to Chelsea having first managed Tottenham rather than the other way round.
He took Spurs to the 2019 Champions League final, where they lost to Liverpool, and his return was widely craved by sections of their fanbase – any notable success at Chelsea will therefore be all the more painful for their London rivals.
Mauricio Pochettino’s managerial record
Mauricio Pochettino has been appointed as the new permanent Chelsea boss.
The Blues have turned to the former Tottenham manager at the end of a turbulent campaign which saw them finish 12th in the Premier League.
Here, the PA news agency examines Pochettino’s managerial record.
EspanyolWon 53, drew 38, lost 70; 32.9 per cent win rate
Having finished his playing career with the Catalan club, Pochettino was pressed into service to lead a struggling team in January 2009 and lifted them from the relegation zone to a mid-table finish – drawing with local rivals Barcelona in the Copa del Rey and beating them in LaLiga.
Espanyol finished 11th, eighth and 14th in his three full seasons in charge, though the former Argentina defender left with them bottom of the table in November 2012 after a poor run of form and a dispute over financial restrictions.
SouthamptonWon 23, drew 18, lost 19; 38.3 per cent win rate
Taking over mid-season from the popular Nigel Adkins, Pochettino led Saints to a 14th-placed finish in 2012-13 and an impressive eighth the following campaign.
Conducting press conferences via an interpreter throughout his spell on the south coast, Pochettino was nevertheless clearly able to get his message across to an over-achieving squad and position himself for higher-profile roles to come.
TottenhamWon 159, drew 62, lost 72; 54.3 per cent win rate
Pochettino’s five-year reign at Tottenham marked the most prolonged period of success and stability in their recent history, with the club finishing fifth, third, second, third and fourth and reaching finals of the Champions League and the League Cup.
The Argentinian nurtured a Spurs squad that was the youngest in the Premier League when they ended as runners-up in 2016-17, containing a mix of domestic talents such as Harry Kane, Dele Alli and Eric Dier, and overseas players including Christian Eriksen, Son Heung-min and Toby Alderweireld.
A club that had had 10 coaches in 12 years before Pochettino’s arrival in 2014 have cycled through Jose Mourinho, interim boss Ryan Mason (twice), Nuno Espirito Santo, Antonio Conte and caretaker Cristian Stellini in short order since his departure in November 2019.
Paris St GermainWon 55, drew 15, lost 14; 65.5 per cent win rate
The French giants, where Pochettino spent time as a player, brought him the first major trophies of his managerial career by winning the Coupe de France in 2020-21 and Ligue 1 in 2021-22.
However, his tenure was not deemed successful as a runners-up finish to Lille in 2020-21 meant PSG missed out on the Ligue 1 title for only the second time in nine seasons, and he failed to guide the capital club to the Champions League final.
Pochettino was sacked last summer having won less than 66 per cent of matches in all competitions, whereas his predecessor Thomas Tuchel – who started this season as Chelsea boss – had a 75 per cent win rate across his two-and-a-half years in charge.
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