Roman Abramovich travels to London for first time since 2018

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has jetted off to London for the first time since 2018, when he first encountered issues with his visa.

Once a permanent fixture at Stamford Bridge, Abramovich has not attended a match in London since 2018, when issues with his entrepreneurial visa saw him take up permanent residence in Israel, although he did manage to watch his side lift the Champions League trophy at the end of last season.

During his time away from the club, Abramovich has regularly been accused of losing his love for Chelsea, despite many in the boardroom at Stamford Bridge rubbishing those rumours.

He may have a chance to pop in and visit his team as The Independent note that Abramovich has jetted into London to see family, arriving as an Israeli citizen who does not need a visa.

Abramovich's spokesperson has confirmed that, while his priority is to see his family, he could well take a trip to Stamford Bridge to see how things are going.

Since his visa issues caused the postponement of Chelsea's new stadium plans, Abramovich has still been heavily involved with the club. He has made significant contributions to the club's Say No To Anti-Semitism and No To Hate campaigns against discrimination, and that's on top of his obvious transfer spending.

Using right-hand woman Marina Granovskaia as his eyes and ears in London, Abramovich has overseen a mass spending spree over the past two years, including the £97.5m acquisition of Romelu Lukaku this summer and the £70m signing of Kai Havertz 12 months earlier.

Under Thomas Tuchel, who did not speak with Abramovich until he handed him the Champions League trophy in May, Chelsea have enjoyed an excellent 2021, winning Europe's top prize and fighting their way back into the Premier League title race.

Abramovich has enjoyed every second of that from afar, and fans hope to see him back at the Bridge in the near future.


Source : 90min