Gary Neville has accused Roman Abramovich of taking a “cowardly approach” and “throwing a hospital pass” after handing stewardship of Chelsea to the club charity’s board of trustees.
Abramovich announced on Saturday night that he would be stepping back from the running of the club, with “stewardship and care” passed to the Chelsea Foundation’s trustees, a group headed by chairman Bruce Buck.
The 55-year-old’s ownership has been under scrutiny in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, over which several other Russian oligarchs have been hit with sanctions by the UK government.
Abramovich has not been affected, but Labour MP Chris Bryant this week called for his assets to be frozen or seized.
Blues boss Thomas Tuchel admitted the situation had been a “distraction” in the build-up to Sunday’s Carabao Cup final against Liverpool and speaking ahead of that game, former Man United defender Neville offered his view.
“I think when the news came through, last night, myself and most others thought it was a noble gesture and the right thing to do,” Neville said on Sky Sports. “But if you look at who is on the charity trust, people like [Chelsea Women’s manager] Emma Hayes, Piara Powar who set up Kick It Out, [sports lawyer] John Devine, it’s quite clear they’re not going to be running Chelsea.
“One of the smartest things Roman Abramovich has done over the last 20 years is not speak, not make statements. The statement last night raised more questions.
“If anything I thought it was a cowardly approach to throw a hospital pass to good people on the charity board when it’s quite clear he runs Chelsea along with Petr Cech and Marina on the football side, as Thomas Tuchel just made clear there.
“The owners of the top six clubs live in an insulated form of reality. They think they can put a smart PR team around them and con us but it doesn’t work that way. There’s no way the charity foundation is running the club and I’m not quite sure why Roman Abramovich made that statement.
“If he wants to make a statement of more value it would be whether he supports the war in Ukraine or doesn’t support the war in Ukraine.”
