Abramovich gives a beggar a
thousand
One is the 11th richest man in the world, worth an estimated £10.8
billion. The other is a woman, clutching a baby and begging on the
grim streets of Moscow. And when she approached Roman Abramovich,
the owner of Chelsea Football Club, last week, she came away with a
1,000 rouble note.
But the money did not come from Mr Abramovich's own pocket -
reports say that he, like the Queen, is actually too rich to carry
cash. Instead, he had to be bailed out by an official of the
Russian Football Federation who spared Mr Abramovich's blushes by
pulling out the 1,000 rouble note and handing it over.
Then Mr Abramovich walked on, shaking his head and smiling to
himself at his generosity as he got into his waiting limousine. Not
that his gift will have dented his fortune - it equates to £20, or
just 0.0000001852 per cent of his worth.
Mr Abramovich had looked nonplussed as the woman, whose identity is
not known, got past his security people to approach him after he
left a five-star hotel.
He had been in a meeting with Russian team manager Gus Hiddink, the
man whose salary Mr Abramovich pays and who had been tipped as a
future Chelsea manager if Jose Mourinho fails to deliver.
