Marina Granovskaia, architect of recent Chelsea success, to leave club upon sale

Granovskaia has been the chief assistant to Roman Abramovich for over ten years

Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia has announced that she will leave the club when it is sold after Roman Abramovich revealed the Blues were up for sale. The Russian-Canadian business executive has worked with Abramovich since 1997, becoming the representative of the Russian owner at Chelsea in 2010 and later joining the board in 2013. She became the Blues' chief executive in 2014 and has been in charge of transfers ever since. Abramovich confirmed on Wednesday evening that he is looking for a buyer for the Premier League club - which he has owned since 2003 - and is willing to write off the £1.5billion he has loaned to the club. Reports suggested that Granovskaia - who has been integral to the running of Chelsea - might choose to leave once Abramovich had officially sold Chelsea, and the 47-year-old has now confirmed that she will be leaving Stamford Bridge. https://twitter.com/losriley/status/1499321606719606784 Granovskaia announced the news on LinkedIn, where she thanked fans for their support and wished the club the best of luck for the future. The statement read: "Today I would like to address the speculation in media over my role in Chelsea FC regarding the future. I consider myself extremely lucky and grateful for the opportunity to work alongside some of the best people in this business and to witness many of our amazing achievements together with the club and our fans. "After the sale of Chelsea FC I will not continue my involvement in the club. I would like to thank once again to everyone at Chelsea FC and I wish the fans nothing but the best in the coming future."

Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss claimed earlier in the week that he had been approached by Abramovich to buy Chelsea and it has been reported that he has joined US tycoon Todd Boehly in a consortium preparing a significant offer to purchase the club.

Related links:

• Roman Abramovich confirms he is selling Chelsea
• Conor McGregor wants to buy Chelsea FC from Roman Abramovich
• Swiss billionaire says he has been offered chance to buy Chelsea from Abramovich