Branislav Ivanovic: Can’t believe it has been almost seven years since I joined Chelsea

Branislav Ivanovic

Branislav Ivanovic has given an open and honest interview in the Chelsea Magazine of late. Speaking the new arrivals, training and his seven years at Chelsea so far, it makes interesting reading.

He said: “We have the quality here and the way we are working every day on passing is improving the movement.

“It is really amazing how quickly the new players have adapted. You could see straight from the first day how they work, how well they do their jobs, and that it is normal for them to play this way. That is why they are here and we are all very happy about that.

“As this group stays together for a long time, we will get better and better – we know each other’s games, we know the movement of each other and this gives us the opportunity to play more easily in games.

“Sometimes we work on special things in preparation for a game, and this is one thing, but it is another to understand your team-mates, to know how they work and what they like on the pitch.

“The moment you start to see what they usually do in training, you know they will usually do this in the game. You have to feel that.

“I can’t believe it has been almost seven years since I joined Chelsea. I think it is a little bit early to speak about ‘my career’, but definitely my best years I am playing in Chelsea – seven years is not a short period, so I am happy about that.”

“I am settled here and I feel very good, very proud, to be part of Chelsea Football Club, and to be part of this team. I play with great players and we always have the same motivation, which is to win trophies – that is what we want to achieve.

“We look at our squad and see that we have enough quality and good enough players to do this, so we have to keep focused and we have to give to our supporters and our club something that will make a difference – and this is trophies.

“Now I feel more freedom, more confidence, and the way we are training, the way we are preparing for games and the way things are inside the club make you feel 100 per cent better and you feel you are improving all the time with these players and everything we have here.”

To his credit, Ivanovic has worked hard to keep his place in the side with the arrival of Filipe Luis at the club. Many expected Cesar Azpilicueta to revert back to right back to accommodate him this season but, as we all know, Ivanovic has been one of our most consistent performers so far.

Let's hope it continues!