Ivanovic Profile

Posted on | Friday, July 1, 2011 | No Comments

Name        :     Branislav Ivanovic
Nationality    :     Serbian
Date of Birth    :     22/02/1984
Height        :    6' 2" (188cm)
Weight        :    13st 8lbs (86.0kg)
Previous    
Clubs        :    OFK Belgrade, Lokomotiv Mosc
Position    :     Defender

Chelsea career
Branislav's start to life as a Chelsea player was slow. Signed in January 2008, it took him eight months to gain the necessary match fitness to play in the Carling Cup away at Portsmouth, before a lengthier spell in the heart of defence alongside John Terry after injury to Ricardo Carvalho and Alex.

Settled in London and his English steadily improving, Branislav began to show his true capabilities, while also earning cult status among Chelsea fans for his Champions League double at Anfield in April 2009.

Deployed at centre-half, Ivanovic went up for two corners and was almost ignored as the threat of Terry and Didier Drogba was deemed more dangerous by Liverpool, allowing him to ghost in and crash home two headers, all but booking our place in that season's semi-finals.

He kept his place for a run of games afterwards, marking Thierry Henry in the Camp Nou, and while at first struggling with the Frenchman's raw pace, he adapted and made a number of important blocks, interceptions and clearances.

If steady progress was the theme of Branislav's first full season as a Chelsea player when he played 26 times, in his second he made himself almost indispensable.

Beginning that 2009/10 campaign as understudy to Jose Bosingwa at right-back, the Serb came in when the Portuguese suffered a season-ending knee injury in October, and never looked back, contributing a series of assured displays with his strong defensive work and powerful attacking play.

His 41 appearances placed him as a frontrunner in voting for our Player of the Year award, and although he eventually lost out to Drogba, he joined the Ivorian in the PFA Premier League Team of the Season.

He bundled himself his solitary goal of the campaign at Bolton at the end of October as he kept seven consecutive clean sheets in all competitions, while beginning to offer an added threat in attack.

Away in the San Siro in the Champions League he was arguably at fault for Inter's first goal but compensated by charging his way through their midfield and defence to tee up Salomon Kalou for the equaliser.

The domestic title race was tight, and going all the way, so it was frustrating for the Serb to pick up a calf injury at Blackburn in March. It kept him out almost a month, returning as a half-time sub at Spurs after damage had already been done, and starting in the 7-0 bashing of Stoke.

Impeccable in a vital win at Liverpool, he then set up Nicolas Anelka before coming off on the hour to a champion's ovation against Wigan as the title was won.

During 2010/11, Ivanovic has been an almost ever-present in the back four, his form rarely dipping below excellent as he earned a new five-and-a-half year deal, signed in early February that will keep him at the club until 2016.

There have been more key goals too, like the late winner at Blackburn in October and a brace against Spartak Moscow a few days later as we sealed progression into the Champions League knockout stages with considerable comfort.

Pre-Chelsea
Signed from Lokomotiv Moscow on a three-and-a-half year contract, Branislav became then manager Avram Grant's second signing in the January 2008 transfer window, following on from the arrival of Nicolas Anelka.

Having begun his career in his native Serbia at local club Sremska Mitrovica, he soon moved to the Serbian capital Belgrade to play for OFK Beograd where he remained for three seasons, joining Lokomotiv in the summer of 2006. He appeared for the Russian side in the Uefa Cup.

International Career
A star of Serbia's Under 21s in both the 2006 and 2007 European Championships, Branislav was voted into the Uefa Team of the Tournament for the more recent event, and successfully graduated into a regular for the full national side.

He made his Serbia and Montenegro debut in June 2006 and was established on the international scene before he was established for Chelsea. No-one played more minutes for Serbia in qualifying for 2010 World Cup where he was a regular although his team didn't make it out the group stage despite defeating Germany. He previously captained Serbia to the final of the European Under 21 Championships.

A versatile defender, Ivanovic has emerged as a dependable player at Chelsea after being an unknown when arriving at Stamford Bridge.

Ivanovic is an outstanding all-purpose defender, equally comfortable as a stopper or shuttling back and forth in the right-back slot.

He captaining Serbia to the final of the 2007 European Under-21 Championship, and he was also named in UEFA's Team of the Tournament. He made his full international debut for the former Serbia & Montenegro in the summer of 2005 in a friendly against Italy played in Canada.

Ivanovic played for FK Srem and OFK Beograd early in his career before being signed by Lokomotiv Moscow in 2006. It was with Lokomotiv that he cemented his place in the Serbia side.

He moved to Chelsea in January in 2008 in a transfer which largely went under the radar though the Russian club reported the deal was worth £9.7 million. He did not appear for the west London club until the 2008-09 campaign and he proved his reliability in an auxiliary role.

Ivanovic, a Premier League title winner in 2010, he started all three of Serbia's games in the World Cup finals in South Africa as they failed to make it out of their group. Strengths: Strong in the air, the tackle and a threat at set-pieces.

Weaknesses: Lacks pace and, at times, concentration.

Career high: Scoring twice against Liverpool at Anfield to help Chelsea through to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2008-09.

Career low: Losing out in the final of the 2007 European Under-21 Championships to hosts Holland.

Style: A versatile player who can fit in on the right of the defence or at centre back, Ivanovic is a dependable if not spectacular footballer.

Quotes: "When you join a club like Chelsea and then find it hard to get games, it can be tough but he has been determined in training and shown a good mentality." Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink after Ivanovic's double against Liverpool in April 2009.

Trivia: His father Rade was a former professional football at FK Srem, where Branislav began his career.

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