Roman Abramovich Is 'Committed to Chelsea,' Says Chairman Bruce Buck

Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck has said that owner Roman Abramovich is "committed" to the club despite not having been to a game since May 2018. 

The Russian billionaire, who has overseen a period of unprecedented success at Stamford Bridge since he bought the club in 2003, was not issued with a new UK visa when his previous one expired last May.

He consequently relocated from London to Israel, and he did not buy any corporate boxes at Chelsea before this season despite having spent between £1 million and £3 million on corporate hospitality boxes every year since 2011, per Martyn Ziegler in the Times.

Buck has since made assurances that Abramovich, 52, is still in regular contact with the club and is keeping abreast of developments in west London, per MailOnline's Robert Summerscales: "Everything he's doing reaffirms his commitment to Chelsea. We hear from him several times a day, and he's talking to us about players, commercial activities and our good causes. So I would say he's committed to Chelsea."

Chelsea have endured mixed fortunes recently. They won Premier League titles in 2014-15 and 2016-17 but followed both those triumphs by finishing outside the top four in the next campaign.

Manager turnover has continued at a rapid pace, with boss Maurizio Sarri the 11th permanent manager of the Abramovich era.

Sarri has endured a mixed first campaign in England since taking over at Stamford Bridge last summer.

Recent performances have not been overly thrilling, and some Blues fans were in open revolt against the Italian during their fortuitous 2-1 win at Cardiff City on Sunday:

Chelsea's 3-0 win against Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday was a vast improvement, though, and the Blues are only outside the Premier League's top four on goal difference.

They are also among the favourites to win the UEFA Europa League, and face Slavia Prague in the first leg of their quarter-final tie on Thursday.