Abramovich Russian Cash Bonus Denied
12th September, 2007
Chelsea have today moved to quash reports suggesting that Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has offered Russia's national players £40,000 to beat England at Wembley on Wednesday. A Chelsea statement read "Roman Abramovich has never offered, proposed or promised any bonuses to the Russian team to beat England."
It is widely known that Abramovich has strong links to football in his homeland, reportedly bankrolling the salary of national coach Guus Hiddink. But the Chelsea statement added: "The financial backing Mr Abramovich gives to Russian football, via his National Academy of Football foundation, is for the development of the game as a whole and is not focused on specific matches. Mr Abramovich supports grass-roots football initiatives through such efforts as building football pitches, helping to organise youth sports academies and providing training for coaches."
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