Roman Abramovich acquired Chelsea in 2003 and 19 years later, he is set to sell the club in dramatic fashion due to the political climate following the invasion of Ukraine by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Abramovich single-handedly turned the Blues into what they are today and while there were many ups and downs throughout his two decades at the helm, there are things that many associated with Chelsea to this day that characterized the club under Abramovich. These things aren’t exhaustive by any means, but here are four major traits that characterized the Blues under the oligarch’s ownership:
1. Ruthlessness
This, of course, should be the first. Many, both Chelsea and non-Chelsea fans alike, associated the club with the constant sacking of managers. That is not just a narrative either as Abramovich hired 13 different managers in his time as the Blues owner, most of them getting sacked less than two years into their reign. In fact, he did his first manager sacking just one year into his tenure, replacing Claudio Ranieri with Jose Mourinho, who won the Champions League by knocking out Abramovich’s Chelsea in the semifinal in the first season of his tenure (2003/04). This ruthlessness often drew mixed reactions from fans and pundits alike, but it is hard to argue that it wasn’t effective after the club went on to win a plethora of trophies, which we’ll get to later.
Opinions about sackings often varied amongst fans based on personal preference, with many agreeing with the firings as they often blamed the managers they didn’t like. Some others blamed the sackings of managers they did like on players or blaming it on irrational behavior by Abramovich himself. Nevertheless, Abramovich is a businessman that has an extensive empire to show for his shrewdness, and so he always took calculated risks when making these decisions. It’s much cheaper to replace one manager than it is to back the same head coach (which often implies getting rid of as many players that clash with said manager, and replacing those players).
It was often difficult to argue with the reason for the sackings, what was disputable was many things leading up to that sacking. For instance, many thought the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti and Antonio Conte to be especially harsh, but Ancelotti had just won the league at a canter and was expected to win it again. He didn’t and he was canned. Conte had also just won the league, and he got Antonio Rudiger, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Alvaro Morata, amongst other players. He was expected to at least qualify for the Champions League. He didn’t and he was subsequently sacked.
Was it realistic to expect Ancelotti to win the league again or were the signings acquired for Conte of the quality with which to expect him to achieve his goals? These are debates that could be had for years. However, these managers clearly did not achieve the objectives laid out for them, and they faced the same fate as their predecessors. Abramovich’s decisions have always been geared toward getting the best outcome for the club, which they often did.