Branislav Ivanovic

Branislav Ivanovic | Serbia & Chelsea Superstar

Serbia have decided to strip Branislav Ivanovic from the captaincy ahead of the upcoming international friendlies against Morocco and Nigeria. Aleksandar Kolarov is now expected to lead the national side with Nemanja Matic appointed as the vice-captain. Speaking in a news conference, Serbian head coach Mladen Krstajić said: “Kolarov, the new captain, and (Nemanja) Matic, his deputy, have the power to follow in Ivanovic’s footsteps. We have made a decision which remains an internal matter but I want to make it clear there is no misunderstanding with Ivanovic who remains part of the team.”

The decision to strip Ivanovic from the leadership role does not come as a surprise, given the 34-year-old had shown the lack of pace during the World Cup qualification phase which was criticised by the fans and pundits alike.

Chelsea and Manchester United have played out some fierce games over the past decade and this Saturday the pair go head-to-head for silverware once more. The two clubs meet at Wembley for this season’s FA Cup Final, with no love-lost between managers Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte, another intense clash is expected. We take a look at the betting odds ahead of this game and which bets are being backed by punters.

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Former Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic said that he is happy playing for Zenit St Petersburg. At 34 years old the defender is enjoying a new lease of life with the Russian club and said that he is feeling better and better.

Indeed the defender was instrumental in his team beating Celtic and moving to the next round of the UEFA Cup. Branislav Ivanovic scored the first goal of the game and then assisted in the third goal for his team in the match that they won 3-0.

Branislav Ivanovic feels that he has made the right thing by joining Zenit St Petersburg and that he feels at home there. He said that the fans have welcomed him and that they all provide wonderful support.

Zenit St Petersburg manager Roberto Mancini has admitted that he is missing his time with Italy, and would like to manage the Azzurri at some stage of his managerial career. The former Manchester City head coach has done a reasonable job with Zenit this season, and they are presently 10 points off league leaders Lokomotiv Moscow.

Zenit St Petersburg defender Branislav Ivanovic is relishing the prospect of a reunion with Celtic forward Scott Sinclair. The pair had spent two seasons together at Chelsea before the latter decided to join Swansea City under then-boss Brendan Rodgers in 2010.

German Bundesliga side RB Leipzig are expected to see off any threat from Russian side Zenit St Petersburg when both sides clash in the Europa League on Thursday. Their star forward Timo Werner will be instrumental as the German heavyweight (currently taking the Bundesliga by storm) look at booking a quarter final spot in the continental tournament.

Werner is the youngest player to reach 150 league appearances in the history of the German top flight. He reached the milestone over the weekend when they played VfB Stuggart. He was 22 years and six days. The forward was involved as the club

Branislav Ivanovic continued his impressive goalscoring run by coming up with a spectacular overhead kick for his current club Zenit St Petersburg in the Europa league. The former Chelsea defender is known for scoring goals, albeit largely through headers in the set piece situations. Now, however, the 33-year-old came up with an effort that most strikers would be proud about. His overhead kick against Real Sociedad enabled Zenit St Petersburg to get a 3-1 victory in this Europa League group match. Over the course of his nine years at Chelsea, Ivanovic came in with several important goals and his current effort may count for the same.

Zenit St Petersburg appeared to be cruising when they took the lead in the first half, but Real Sociedad came back with a strong effort in the second half. The goals from Ivanovic and Leandro Paredes put Zenit in a very comfortable position in the group. The Russian outfit had already established a decisive lead over Real Sociedad, but a defeat in this match would have been bad for the club’s hopes of finishing at the top of the group. As it stands, the Russian outfit will be reaching the next round of the Europa League as the group winners.

Zenit St Petersburg coach Roberto Mancini has conceded that he would like to coach the Italian national side before calling quits on his managerial career. The 52-year-old is currently the head coach of Russian giants Zenit, whom he joined during the summer.

In a report covered by Football Italia, the former Manchester City boss was impressed by the performance of the likes of Lazio, Inter Milan and Napoli this season, but stressed his desire to manage Italy by the age of 70, he said: "I really hope they qualify, because a World Cup without Italy is senseless. I'd like to become CT… before I turn 70. It is the dream of every Coach, but now it's right that the Nazionale is concentrated on qualification."

Serbia captain Branislav Ivanovic has saluted the bravery of his side after they survived a stiff challenge in Dublin.

The Republic of Ireland were in dire need of a win when they faced the Serbians at the Aviva Stadium on Tuesday, but things did not go as planned as Aleksandar Kolarov scored in a 1-0 win for the visitors. The match did not finish without any drama as Nikola Maksimovic's 68th-minute lead to an Ireland onslaught. Both Shane Long and Jonathan Walters battled for every lost cause in the attacking half, and Ivanovic admitted that he and his colleagues had to battle hard for the win.

Serbia captain Branislav Ivanovic has spoken about the team's unity as they look to cement their place in next year's World Cup finals in Russia.

Wales are currently four points adrift of Serbia heading into the final set of World Cup qualifiers, and Ivanovic has called on his side to maintain their focus with a victory assuring them of a berth in next summer's global tournament.