Ancelotti: Abramovich was Chelsea's most demanding owner, a persistent shadow over his era
In a forthcoming memoir, the former Chelsea manager describes the owner’s hands‑on style and the pressure that defined his two seasons in west London.
Carlo Ancelotti says Roman Abramovich was the most fearsome taskmaster he has worked for, describing the Chelsea owner’s demand for constant success as a shadow over his tenure in west London. Ancelotti managed Chelsea from 2009 to 2011, delivering a Premier League and FA Cup double in his first season before being dismissed in 2011.
Delivering details from his autobiography, The Dream - Winning the Champions League, Ancelotti writes that Abramovich pressed to win Europe and to give Chelsea a clear on‑pitch identity. The owner was known to visit the training ground after defeats, demanding explanations for what had gone wrong.
Ancelotti recounts the first clear sign of the owner’s intensity after an unexpected 3-1 loss to Wigan Athletic, when Abramovich arrived at the training ground the morning after the defeat seeking answers about what had gone wrong. The episode underscored a sense that a shadow had fallen over his time at Chelsea and that the owner expected relentless accountability for results.
A separate chapter in the memoir describes the friction surrounding Jose Mourinho, who had previously steered Inter Milan to a Champions League triumph over Chelsea. Ancelotti says Abramovich believed Mourinho should be considered a spent force and that letting him disrupt the script would undermine the Chelsea project. For Abramovich, European success defined Ancelotti’s tenure, and the manager notes that how he handled Mourinho would significantly shape the owner’s view of him.
The tension carried into domestic decline. Ancelotti explains that his removal came after a mid‑season decision to substitute Fernando Torres at half‑time during a Champions League defeat, a move he says was a direct rebuke to the owner. He adds that in the eyes of Abramovich, there was no guarantee of success, and the dynamics of power at Chelsea were unforgiving. Yet the club persisted and would eventually win Europe the following year, defeating Bayern Munich on penalties in the 2012 Champions League final.
Chelsea’s owner, Abramovich, stepped away from the club in 2022 after sanctions linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with the sale to Todd Boehly and Clearlake valued at about $2.5 billion. The proceeds have been frozen in a UK bank account as authorities established a mechanism to channel funds to humanitarian relief in Ukraine. A Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office spokesperson said the government was working to ensure the proceeds reach humanitarian causes as quickly as possible while discussions with Abramovich’s representatives continue.
Ancelotti, now the Brazil national team manager, has long tested his leadership under some of football’s most powerful figures, including Silvio Berlusconi at AC Milan, Florentino Perez at Real Madrid and Nasser Al-Khelaifi at PSG. But he contends that none of these owners matched the intensity Abramovich brought to Chelsea, a pressure that shaped how he was judged during and after his tenure.
The autobiography The Dream - Winning the Champions League is published September 25, 2025, with a listed price of £22.00.