It was Roman Abramovich’s investment in Chelsea that has allowed for the club to become one of the best in the country. He took over ownership of the club in 2003 and has a serious passion for the game. Some have noticed though that he is not attending as many of the matches as he used to and some fans are seeing this as him losing interest.
Chairman of the Chelsea is Bruce Buck and he says this is anything but true. In a recent interview for a book by Ian Ridley called There’s a Golden Sky, he says that Abramovich has an incredibly deep knowledge of the sport and that is passion for it is as alive as ever.
Buck said, “Abramovich’s knowledge and passion for the game has only increased. He is so informed about the game it is incredible. There is probably not a player in the world that he couldn’t give you up to date statistics for. I would say that since taking over the club he has only become more interested in the game. He still watches the Chelsea games, just he can’t always do it in person, but wherever he is in the world, you can be sure he is tuning in.”
In the book Buck is also reminiscing about when Abramovich wanted to get involved with the Premier League, “He asked UBS to look at which clubs where the best ones to invest into. He considered Manchester United and Aston Villa, but they did not seem so financially viable. In the end it was down to two Tottenham or Chelsea. For whatever reason Tottenham were not willing to meet, so Chelsea, who needed the capital were the club Abramovich chose. Our fans have sure been pleased with the results.”