John Terry faces backlash over 'appalling' tribute to Roman Abramovich

Former England and Chelsea captain John Terry has been criticised by a Labour MP for posting a photo of himself with Roman Abramovich.

Senior MP Chris Bryant told the Commons it was a “mystery” to him why Abramovich “has not yet been sanctioned”, with the Russian-Israeli billionaire on Wednesday announcing his intention to sell Chelsea.

Former minister Bryant branded Terry's tweet "appalling" and asked Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries in the Parliament: “I wonder whether she would condemn John Terry today. I don’t know whether she’s seen this but he has posted today a photo of himself with Roman Abramovich, who is one of Putin’s cronies.

“What will the people of Ukraine think of the former England football captain?”

Read more: Russia-Ukraine war latest: 6 major developments from Thursday

On Thursday, Terry posted a picture of him standing with Abramovich holding the Premier League cup saying "The Best."

In response to this Bryant tweeted: I think John Terry you should take this down ASAP. The people of Ukraine are being bombed, shelled and murdered while you celebrate Abramovich."

Abramovich could come under government sanctions given his proximity to the Russian state, though he is also understood to have been attempting to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

The Russian-Israeli billionaire confirmed his “incredibly difficult decision” to sell Chelsea on Wednesday night, amid Russia’s continued invasion of Ukraine.

Watch: Abramovich confirms he’s selling Chelsea as sanctions loom

Read more: Fears Putin will impose martial law in Russia after Ukrainian invasion

The 55-year-old has owned the club since 2003 and helped steer them to 19 major trophies.

It is believed he is close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, but Abramovich has denied this.

The government has announced a raft of sanctions against Russian oligarchs in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

Many of them have a fondness for the UK and have considerable assets stored there.

The government is coming under pressure to do more to seize their assets after conceding it could take “weeks and months” to build legally-sound cases.

So far Abramovich has not been sanctioned by the British government.

European nations have been more aggressive with seizing Russian assets.

French authorities have said they seized a yacht linked to Igor Sechin, an ally of Putin who runs oil giant Rosneft, under EU sanctions. It was also reported Germany had seized another megayacht.

Abramovich has generally been popular with Chelsea and the supporters club paid tribute to him on Thursday.

They said: “The CST would like to express our gratitude to Mr Abramovich for his affection, passion and dedication towards Chelsea FC.

“His support has brought us unparalleled success during his tenure. Chelsea supporters will never forget all he has done for our club.

“The Trust recognises the importance of the unprecedented and generous decision to not ask for any loans made to the club to be repaid and the decision to use the proceeds of the sale in a way that will benefit the victims of the war in Ukraine.

“We are deeply saddened and shocked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent loss of live. We stand with the people of Ukraine.”