Top Facts about Branislav Ivanovic

Although the exact dates are not clarified yet, he surely stepped into the infinite world of football at a very young age.

He was born and raised in a football lover family as his father and his uncle were both professional footballers. They were all very passionate and supportive when they figure out how talented and serious Branislav is about his future career.

is actually a versatile defender; he mostly plays as a right back, but he can also change his position to center back.

Though he had lots of difficulties maintaining his spot in Chelsea, he somehow managed to get along with too many obstacles that were blocking his way all through the victory.

This article contains top facts about Branislav Ivanovic:

The first

fact about Branislav Ivanovic

is that his maternal uncle is the late footballer Dorde Milovanovic, who used to play for Red Star Belgrade. He also has a cousin, Dejan Milovanovic that just like him is a professional footballer. As a matter of fact, the two of them used to play alongside each other in the junior national teams.

Branislav Ivanovic’s Early Life

Branislav Ivanovic was born on 22 February 1984 to his Serbian parents Slavica Ivanovic and Rade Ivanovic. He was born and raised in the city of Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia.

Branislav has never talked about having siblings, therefore it is assumed that he is the only child of the Ivanovic family.

Apparently, enthusiasm and love for football runs in Ivanovic family since Branislav’s father, Rade used to be a footballer playing for the hometown club, FK Srem as a defender.

Obviously the father was the actual inspire to the son and the person who pushed him into going after his dreams.

Following his dad’s footsteps, Branislav Ivanovic started his youth career with FK Srem as well. He spent his training years, focusing on the abilities he could develop much more and to finally fit into the endless world of football.

Branislav Ivanovic’s Club Career

Branislav also began playing as a professional footballer in 2002 with the same hometown club, FK Srem. It’s not clearly stated when or against which football club he had his senior debut. His professional journey in this team didn’t last too long and he joined the top division side OFK Beograd in December 2004.

One more

fact about Branislav Ivanovic

is that his first season in OFK Beograd coincided with the First League of Serbia and Montenegro. The team along with Branislav’s contributions, was doing incredibly excellent. They even succeeded to reach the 2004 UEFA Intertoto Cup semi-finals.

Lokomotiv Moscow

His two-year career in OFK Beograd fascinated so many different clubs and soon enough he became a serious option for them to consider. As a matter of fact in January 2006, Branislav Ivanovic left OFK Beograd for Russian Premier League club,

.

In his first season in Lokomotiv, he participated in 28 league games and meanwhile, scored two goals. But in the second and also the last one, he made 27 appearances in the league games and managed to score three goals on the whole.

During his time in Lokomotiv Moscow, he became a crucial member of the team and his outstanding performances eventually led to winning the Russian Cup in a 1–0 victory over FC Moscow.

Chelsea

On 15 January 2008 after an agreement between Lokomotive and

, Branislav Ivanovic moved to this Premier League club.

At first they attempted to keep the transfer fee undisclosed, however, it was rumored that it should be around £9 million. But later, it was confirmed from the Russians that the actual transfer fee was £9.7 million. According to Lokomotic Moscow, Ivanovic’s transfer fee was the largest one in the entire history of Russian football.

The contract that had been signed between Chelsea and Ivanovic was meant to last for three years and a half. Branislav was given the jersey with the number 2 on it.

Another fact about Branislav Ivanovic is that during the 2007-2008 Premier League season, he didn’t make any appearance at all. The reason behind is the fact that Ivanovic wasn’t ready to represent the club, considering his fitness and his style of playing.

Nobody was actually satisfied with his performance and somehow he had to start everything from the beginning and to process some training sessions. Later, the Serbian footballer himself admitted that it was the hardest period in his entire career.

Early in the 2008-2009 season, Ivanovic had in mind the idea of leaving Chelsea. He even had a plan to join either of the clubs,

or

. But after negotiating this matter and hearing a piece of advice from his teammate, Andriy Shevchenko, Branislav decided to stay.

He finally made his debut for Chelsea eight months after joining the club. As a matter of fact, it was a match against

in the right-back position for the League Cup. Later his very first performance was somehow approved by the manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari.

On 5 October at Stamford Bridge, Ivanovic had his Premier League debut in a 2-0 win against

. Nevertheless, he was found not fully ready to play at least in the following five league matches. Meanwhile, the only appearance he made was a last minute substitute for Jose Bosingwa in a game against

.

However, Chelsea’s manager decided to give Branislav another chance of playing after their successful match over the second-tier Championship side

for the League Cup that occurred on 12 November.

To prove his worth, Ivanovic had the opportunity to play at four consecutive matches, one of which would be considered as his Champions League debut. But again, Ivanovic failed to impress Scolari as the Blues lost 1-2 to

on 30 November.

Therefore, in the first part of season 2008-2009, Branislav made only nine appearances overall. So one more time, it was the moment for Branislav to reconsider the options in hand so as to leave Chelsea for a new club.

The team that showed the most interest in Ivanovic was the Serie A club

. But after sessions of discussion, finally on 1 February, it was confirmed from the Italians that Chelsea was in fact reluctant about selling the Serbian footballer.

Due to the poor performance that Chelsea had been showing during the season, Scolari was replaced with the new manager, Guus Hiddink. Just like the previous one, Hiddink kept Ivanovic far from the team for a while but later on 4 April, it was the moment for the Serb to show some skills in a fixture versus

.

It was Branislav’s first league appearance after three frustrating months in hope of another chance. The result of trusting him once more, turned out a good idea as he responded with assured defensive displays.

He also scored his first goal for Chelsea in the first match of the Champions League quarter-final against

. Later in the same game, he scored another goal which made an absolute 1-3 victory for the Blues.

These two goals not only established Ivanovic a regular spot on the team but also made him a favorite character among the Chelsea fans as they started calling him by the nickname “two goal” ever since.

But apparently, it wasn’t enough reason for Guus Hiddink when he decided to relegate Ivanovic to the bench again. So right after making appearance in the first match of the Champions League semi-final, he not only missed the second one but also the FA Cup Final.

Subsequently, the next season also started with a new manager, Carlo Ancelotti. Therefore, Branislav had a fresh start and participated in a game against Premier League champions

.

Branislav also had his first Premier League of season 2009-2010 versus

that finished with a 3-1 win for Chelsea. He even took part in the fixture against

in September, which was his first Champions League appearance of the season. After Bosingwa got injured in October, Branislav became the key role in the Chelsea defense.

Nearly in the end of 2009 after the Serb appeared on the front page of Marca, it was rumored that

had an eye on Branislav so as to replace him with their injured center back, Pepe. The reason behind these assumptions was the fact that this Spanish magazine had always been supporting Real Madrid over these past few years.

Another

fact about Branislav Ivanovic

is that he was announced as the 2009-2010 PTA Team of the Year in his position as a right-back.

On 21 April 2013, Ivanovic was subject to an oral assault by the Liverpool player Luis Suarez during playing for the Premier League. The incident occurred when the two of them were trying to reach the ball but out of a sudden, Suarez dug his teeth into Ivanovic’s right arm and bit it.

As a result, Suarez was found absolutely guilty of violent conduct and subsequently was banned from playing in the ten following matches from the FA. But overall, Ivanovic didn’t press charges against him even though at first when Suarez apologized, he refused it. But then he said that he was just mad at that moment which later faded away.

Zenit Saint Petersburg

Finally after a journey full of ups and downs with Chelsea, on 1 February 2017 he moved to

on a two-and-a-half-year deal. He made his debut for the new team in in the Europa League playing against

.

During his career in the Russian club, he not only became the captain of the team for two consecutive seasons but also established himself as a defensive bedrock.

A shocking fact about Branislav Ivanovic is that he won the Russian Super Cup but accidently dropped it and it broke into tiny little pieces.

However, the Serb is currently playing for

. In fact on 15 September 2020, West Bromwich Albion confirmed that Ivanovic has signed a 1-year deal with the English club.

Branislav Ivanovic’s International Career

Branislav Ivanovic’s international career for

started with the youth level under-21. His debut at the same level occurred on 15 December 2003 in a 4–1 victory over

. It took Branislav only two days to score his first goal in a 7-0 win against the same opponent.

Ivanovic also made 4 caps in the 2006 U-21 Championships and managed to score a goal. Afterwards, he became the captain of the team until the 2007 U-21 Championships final, in which they were defeated by

.

But on 8 June 2005, he was called up to play in a friendly match against

that would be considered as his international debut at the senior level. However, he didn’t play in any other games, including the 2006

and then shortly after, Serbia’s dissolution took place in the same year, which took him even longer to come back on the field of play.

In the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying fixture against

, he scored a last-minute goal which was also his first international goal at the senior level. In addition to his international career, Branislav started the qualification game for the 2010 World Cup, where he also scored the winning goal against

.

Again he became the captain of the team and on 28 February 2012, his first appearance under this title, he scored a brilliant goal in a friendly game versus

that resulted in 2-0.

In 2013, Branislav became the Serbian Footballer of the Year. He was also the third player to receive this award twice and the first one to win it in consecutive years.

In June 2018, Ivanovic was included in the Serbian squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Subsequently, after appearing twice for Serbia against

and

, he became the player with the most appearances in the history of Serbian football by having 105 caps.

Branislav Ivanovic’s Love Life

Branislav Ivanovi had a long term relationship with his hometown neighbor, Natasa. Eventually the couple’s relationship became more serious after a while and finally they decided to tie the knot thirteen years ago on 12 January 2008.

There’s no actual information about who Natasa really is. Details like her birth date, birth place, career or educational background have never been discussed before.

Branislav and Natasa have four beautiful children that two of them are actually twins. Three of the children’s names have been revealed so far: Stefan, Andreja and Ana (the twins). However, we are not sure about the fourth child.

It was rumored that Branislav was having another affair with the Serbian socialite, Marijana Matthaus. The whole story got heated after spotting the two of them several times in public. Nonetheless, nothing has been denied or even confirmed from anyone yet.

Branislav Ivanovic’s Social Media

Bad news for Branislav Ivanovic’s fans: He hates taking selfie and emphasizes keeping a huge distance from the social media.

As of 2021, Branislav Ivanovic has never had an active account on any of the social media platforms widely known to people.

Ivanovic has not mentioned whether or not he’s going to change his mind and to join many others on popular websites such as Instagram, Facebook or Twitter in near future.

But let’s cross our fingers for the Serb to finally join us all on social media where his fans could be in touch with him and hear the latest news from himself.

More Facts about Branislav Ivanovic

• Full name:

  Branislav Ivanović

• Birth date:

  22 February 1984

• Birth place:

  Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia

• Nationality:

  Serbian

• Height:

  1.85 m

• Weight:

  86 kg

• Jersey number:

  20

Ivanovic is commonly called by the nickname "Bane", it’s an abbreviation of his first name that mostly his friends and teammates use to address him.

Branislav is identified with his passion, generosity and forgiveness. He’s also known for being humble and caring when it comes to family and friends.

Speaking of friends, Branislav has a rather long term friendship with the great tennis players, Novak Djokovic and Ana Ivanovic. He’s also in touch with the Serbian player Jelena Jankovic.

Another fact about Branislav Ivanovic is that he is a member of the Serbian Orthodox Church located in London, St Sava.

Also it is noteworthy to say that several years ago in an interview about Chelsea he said “This is my club and I love it,” he said. “The club will always stay in me and I will always be part of Chelsea in my head, 100 per cent. I’m so proud and happy to have had the opportunity to be part of the best club in the world.”

Unfortunately, details about

Branislav Ivanovic’s body measurements

are not stated at the moment.

Branislav Ivanovic’s Net Worth and Salary

After signing a £9.7 million deal with Chelsea, Branislav Ivanovic made a rather great fortune for himself and as a result, his salary as well as his net worth, got boosted immediately.

According to the released reports in 2017,

Branislav Ivanovic’s net worth

is the estimated number of $26 million, which obviously includes all of his personal properties and income.

He also has an annual salary of $6.5 million and during his career in Chelsea, he had the salary of approximately $80,000 per week. Anyhow, new info regarding Branislav's transfer fee with the current club has remained undisclosed.

As of 2021,

Branislav Ivanovic’s market value

is reportedly about $12,000,000.

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