Tag: Chelsea FC

CHELSEA: Chelsea are closing on the first major signing of the Todd Boehly era at Stamford Bridge after reportedly agreeing on personal terms with Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling.

Sky Sports reported that Sterling’s move to London is “imminent” although a fee is yet to be agreed upon between the clubs.

Sterling, 27, is into the final year of his contract at the Etihad, but City are expected to hold out for a fee in the region of £45 million ($54 million).

The England international has won four Premier League titles among nine major trophies since joining City from Liverpool in 2015.

A key player in the early years of Pep Guardiola’s reign at City, Sterling has scored 131 goals in 337 appearances for the English champions.

However, his regular place in the starting line-up at City has come increasingly under threat from the signing of Jack Grealish for a Premier League record £100 million last year, plus the emergence of Phil Foden from the club’s academy.

The City have also bolstered their attacking options for the new season with the arrival of Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez.

Chelsea are in the market for goalscorers after letting record signing Romelu Lukaku return to Inter Milan on loan just a year after splashing £97 million on the Belgian striker.

New chairman Boehly has thrust himself to the fore of transfer negotiations with the American also acting as interim sporting director after the regime change radically altered the Stamford Bridge hierarchy.

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CHELSEA: Todd Boehly was Wednesday named as Chelsea’s new chairman to replace Bruce Buck and will act as interim sporting director after the club confirmed the departure of Marina Granovskaia.

Granovskaia is stepping down from her role as director as part of a shake-up at Stamford Bridge, leaving co-controlling owner Boehly to spearhead Chelsea’s negotiations in the transfer window.

All the top Boehly-Clearlake Capital consortium figureheads have been added to Chelsea’s new board following the purchase of the club from Roman Abramovich.

“As custodians of Chelsea FC, we now begin executing our long-term vision and plan for the club, creating an outstanding experience for its passionate, loyal fans, and continuing to challenge for top honours in line with Chelsea FC’s dedicated history,” said Boehly.

“Working together, side by side, we are firmly committed to winning, both on and off the pitch. For us, that effort has begun.”

Clearlake chiefs and Chelsea co-controlling owners Behdad Eghbali and Jose Feliciano have also been added to the Blues’ new board.

Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Mark Walter, Swiss magnate Hansjoerg Wyss and British tycoon Jonathan Goldstein have all been officially named on the Chelsea board.

Chelsea will now start the search for a permanent sporting director, with Granovskaia leaving the club after almost 20 years at Stamford Bridge.

Granovskaia rose to prominence as one of the toughest negotiators in football in Abramovich’s Chelsea reign.

“Boehly will operate as interim sporting director until the club names a full-time replacement, continuing the club’s work towards its targets during the current transfer window,” said Chelsea’s statement.

Granovskaia will remain available during the current transfer window to help the club’s transition.

Chelsea face a hectic summer transfer market of transfer dealings.

Romelu Lukaku is reportedly set to rejoin Inter Milan on loan after a disappointing spell at Stamford Bridge.

The club, who finished third in the Premier League last season, have been linked with Sevilla’s Jules Kounde, Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling and Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembele.

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LONDON: Chelsea confirmed on Saturday that a consortium led by LA Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly has won the battle to buy the Premier League club in a £4.25 billion ($5.2 billion) deal.

Owner Roman Abramovich put Chelsea on the market in early March, just days before he was sanctioned by the British government.

After a lengthy bidding process involving several groups, Boehly and his fellow investors were picked by Raine Group, the New York bank overseeing the sale.

Boehly’s consortium includes a fellow co-owner of the Dodgers baseball franchise, Mark Walter, Swiss billionaire Hansjoerg Wyss and US investment firm Clearlake Capital.

“Chelsea Football Club can confirm that terms have been agreed for a new ownership group, led by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter and Hansjoerg Wyss, to acquire the club,” they said in a statement.

“Of the total investment being made, £2.5 billion will be applied to purchase the shares in the club and such proceeds will be deposited into a frozen UK bank account with the intention to donate 100 percent to charitable causes as confirmed by Roman Abramovich.

“UK government approval will be required for the proceeds to be transferred from the frozen UK bank account.”

In addition, the new owners will commit £1.75 billion in further investment “for the benefit of the club”, Chelsea said.

The total value of the deal smashes the previous record for the sale of a sports team — $2.4 billion for the New York Mets baseball franchise in 2020.

Chelsea’s 42,000-capacity Stamford Bridge home is in need of major redevelopment to match the stadium size and income streams enjoyed by their rivals.

But Boehly has a track record of delivering both stadium improvement and sporting success with the Dodgers.

Thanks to heavy investment in players, the Dodgers have made the MLB (Major League Baseball) playoffs every season for the past nine years and won their first World Series for 32 years in 2020.

Boehly’s consortium still needs to satisfy the Premier League’s owners’ and directors’ test, but Chelsea said they expect the sale to be completed by the end of the month.

Boehly is expected to attend the Premier League clash with Wolves at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.

The Chelsea Supporters’ Trust said it welcomed the club’s announcement.

“We will continue to hold close discussions with the prospective owners,” it said in a statement. “We are optimistic about the future of #CFC. We hope that the sale is completed swiftly.”

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