Marina Granovskaia's successful work in the shadow of Chelsea boss Abramovich

 

Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia is one of the women who has stood in football due to her successful work at Champions League holders Chelsea over the last decade.

The Russian executive was named as the Best Club Director in European football at the Golden Boy awards back in November following the team's success under Thomas Tuchel in 2021/22.

Now, L'Equipe has published a profile of her to stress her importance in the club's day-to-day life, also revealing that she had a strong argument with the controversial agent Mino Raiola and that she is occasionally conducting business through WhatsApp.

Chelsea made great profit from the sales of players such as Eden Hazard, Thibaut Courtois, Alvaro Morata and David Luiz, with Granovskaia playing a key role in negotiations.

Granovskaia worked as Roman Abramovich's personal assistant at his oil company before she ended up being the most powerful director at Chelsea after the departure of Michael Emenalo.

She is ranked fifth overall in 2018 in Forbes' 'Most Powerful Women in International Sports' list due to her influential role in the shadow of her boss at one of the biggest European clubs.