Last season, Branislav Ivanovic featured in 59 games for
the Blues and he was named Man of the Match in the Europa League Final after
heroically heading the ball into Benfica’s net in injury time: bringing home
the title.
The 29-year-old is now considered as a prominent figure
for the west London club. The Serbian international has worked really hard to
become the player he is today, and his efforts have certainly paid off.
Continue after the cut.....
Chelsea acquired the Serbian’s services in January 2008,
but it wasn’t until September that Ivanovic earned his first Chelsea start,
which was against Portsmouth in the League Cup. In the 2008/2009 season, the
former Lokomotiv player struggled to secure a place in Chelsea’s defense. During
the winter transfer window, he was linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge
but such transfer never materialized.
In the same season, Chelsea were in poor form which led
to the removal of coach Luiz Felipe Scolari and the appointment of Guus
Hiddink. Despite the managerial change, Ivanovic was again constantly omitted
from the Chelsea side and by then he was completely out of the first team
picture.
The tables turned in Ivanovic’s spell at Stamford Bridge
on the 8th of April in 2009 when Chelsea visited Anfield to face Liverpool in
the Champions League quarter finals. In that match, not only did Ivanovic
flourish in his defensive role but he was also the main attacking threat,
scoring two goals to lead Chelsea to a 3-1 win over the Merseyside club.
Ivanovic’s two goals also earned him a regular starting
place for the time being in Guus Hiddink’s side, as well as making him an
instant fan favorite among Chelsea supporters with the nickname Branislav ‘two
goal’ Ivanovic announced before games.
In the 2009/2010 season, Branislav Ivanovic took
advantage of Jose Bosingwa’s season-ending knee injury in October and he became
an automatic choice in Chelsea’s defense. Since then, he’s gone on to enjoy
three successful seasons with the Blues; clocking up more than 40 appearances
in each year.
In his spell at Chelsea, Ivanovic has enjoyed lifting the
Champions League and Europa League trophies. He also helped Chelsea complete
the English double in 2010. He was named Serbian Player of the Year in 2012 and
he was also given the captain’s armband for his national team following Nemanja
Vidic’s retirement.
Ivanovic has worked so hard to make a name for himself.
He succeeded on doing so, and today he is a Chelsea hero with more than 200
appearances. He has enjoyed a marvelous spell at Stamford Bridge and he is
looking to impress once more next season.
0 comments:
Post a Comment