The Russian, 55, welcomed John Harding, Shaun Pinner, Aiden Aslin, Dylan Healy and Andrew Hill on a jet that was flying them from Russia to Saudi Arabia. He gave each of the men iPhones so they could call their families and even talked soccer with the men while they ate steaks on the flight to Riyadh. Mr Harding, a British army veteran, said he had not recognized the Russian billionaire on the plane until Pinner, a West Ham fan, pointed him out. Mr Harding told the Sun: “Sean said: ‘You really look like Roman Abramovich’ and he replied: ‘That’s because I’m him, sir.’ He couldn’t believe it. “I joked that Shaun is a West Ham fan and we all laughed.” Read more: Roman Abramovich ‘played a key role’ in freeing Aiden Ashlin and Russian POWs