“Roman felt p***** off” – Villas-Boas reveals Abramovich’s reaction to missing out on transfer targets

Andre Villa-Boas reveals that former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich felt angry at missing out on transfer targets

Speaking to the Telegraph (h/t Evening Standard), former Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas revealed the anger felt by previous club owner Roman Abramovich at missing out on transfer targets during his term as the manager of the team.

Villas-Boas was hired as the Blues’ boss in the summer of 2011. However, he lasted less than a year after failing to make the team win games regularly. The Portuguese took charge of 40 Chelsea games in the 2011/12 season and won only won 20 of them.

Part of the problems he faced was the club’s inability to complete transfer deals. Missing out on midfielders Luka Modric and Joao Moutinho was the reason for the downward turn in the mood of owner Abramovich.

Here’s what Villas-Boas said about those missed transfer targets (h/t Evening Standard):

“We missed the Modric deal at the beginning of the season.”

“If the Modric deal was not to be done there was the Moutinho deal to be done. That was the promise of Roman [Abramovich] at that time.

I thought that we had the Modric deal done and he ended up in Real Madrid the season after. Then the Moutinho deal was to be done with Porto but the problem was [Chelsea’s] deal for the left-back of Porto, Alvaro Pereira, fell through. Roman felt p***** off.”

We all know what Modric has achieved since joining Real Madrid. Five Champions League titles and a Ballon d’Or to begin with. The Croatian is not just a great footballer, but a leader by example and by voice.

Moutinho’s career, though not as trophy-laden as Modric’s, has been successful too. He has been a triumphant addition to the Wolverhampton Wanderers squad since joining them in 2018. Before that, he did well at Monaco, FC Porto and Sporting Lisbon. The 36-year-old is also someone who is a smart operator on the field and a fantastic leader.

While Villas-Boas never seemed like the right fit at Chelsea, he certainly could have done better with either of the two mentioned above in his team, preferably the first one. There are times when good players dictate how good a manager you are. Modric can do that under most managers in any team.

More Chelsea News:

• Wesley Fofana has to make a decision regarding his international allegiance before the World Cup
• Real Madrid confident in signing Chelsea target Jude Bellingham next summer
• Chelsea in contention to sign RB Leipzig’s Christopher Nkunku next summer

From Abramovich’s viewpoint, he was a no-nonsense owner who wanted the best for the football club. So, there is no surprise that he was angered by the fact that the club could not complete the signing of two midfielders on top of the wishlist.