Former Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic thinks that the blues can be dominant in Europe only when Roman Abramovich makes a return to Stamford Bridge. The Chelsea owner has not been seen at the home of the blues for a while, as he has been denied a visa by the UK government.Abramovich was a constant feature in the hospitality box and his absence from the top has been conspicuous. Even though day-to-day running of the club has not been affected since the likes of Marina Granovskaia have been doing extremely well, Ivanovic appears to be hinting at the lack of passion without the owner in the stands.
Abramovich has been one of the hands-on owners in the Premier League and he has been able to get a huge amount of respect from all section of supporters. However, he has been denied a visa due to UK’s ongoing problem with Russia. Even though Chelsea have been successful in the Europa League, the lack of Champions League success has been quite conspicuous. The blues’ one and only title in this competition was in 2012 when Ivanovic was one of the players to the start the final. The Serbian defender went on to make 400 appearances for the club and he is one of the most successful names after arriving as a relative unknown for just £9 million.
“This is a new Chelsea team. The club didn’t have the perfect season last year, but still finished third.Chelsea need Roman Abramovich back. That’s the most important thing for all the fans. We want to see him at Stamford Bridge, then Chelsea will be among the best teams in Europe once again.He’s been one of the most important people in my career, and I appreciate everything he’s done for me. Whenever I had a difficult moment at Chelsea, he always believed in me. I owe him a lot," said Ivanovic.