CHELSEA’S takeover seems to have taken a turn for the worse as there are now fears that a deal with Todd Boehly could COLLAPSE.
Boehly has been named as the preferred bidder for Chelsea despite a last-gasp £4billion bid from Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
And Boehly’s team were told they had been granted a “period of exclusivity” to discuss the final terms and conditions of a takeover package.
However Russian Oligarch Roman Abramovich is reportedly “attempting to renege on his promise to write off a £1.6 billion debt”.
This is despite the 55-year-old saying he would NOT be asking for any loans to be repaid when he put the club up for sale.
Which could see any future deal between Boehly and the West London outfit fall through.
Or in a worst case scenario, Chelsea could LOSE their Premier League status.
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Keep up to date with all of the latest gossip from the takeover in our live blog…
Takeover ongoing situation
If a deal with LA Dodgers owner Todd Boehly is agreed, it will still need to be accepted by the Premier League, with all parties subject to the owners and directors test.
That is likely to take a minimum of 10 further days to be completed.
And the ultimate sign-off will then need to come from the UK government after Roman Abramovich and his assets, including the club, were placed on the sanctions list.
But Abramovich’s loans could make things much more confusing for the negotiators
More on takeover risk
Chelsea’s takeover has hit a serious obstacle over fears that departing owner Roman Abramovich is attempting to renege on his promise to write off a £1.6billion debt.
That is according to The Times, who report that the Blues told the government as well as several bidding groups that they want to restructure the way the club is being sold.
That would include paying off the debt from the West Londoners’ parent company Fordstam Ltd to a Jersey-based company Camberley International Investments, which appears to be linked to Abramovich.
There is fear that would badly affect the switch amid the Russian’s sanctions, which has seen his assets getting frozen due to Russia’s unjust war in Ukraine
Credit: GETTY IMAGES Chelsea ‘top-four place secure’
Chelsea can bank on a top-four finish this season despite their takeover worries.
That’s the view of football legend Chris Sutton who claims the Blues’ spot in next season’s Champions League is secure despite the club’s indifferent form as of late.
The ex-Blackburn striker said: “Chelsea have had a wobble, things aren’t right.
“Everyone looks at the uncertainty for next season but you look at the fixtures they have left and they couldn’t have easier fixtures. I think they will finish in the top four.”
Chelsea takeover faces COLLAPSE
There are fears that the Chelsea takeover could COLLAPSE amid claims Roman Abramovich wants to recoup £1.6billion in loans.
But according to The Times, there could be a big spanner thrown into the works.
Abramovich is reportedly “attempting to renege on his promise to write off a £1.6 billion debt”.
This is despite the 55-year-old saying he would NOT be asking for any loans to be repaid when he put the club up for sale.
Ratcliffe’s plans for Chelsea
Chelsea bidder Jim Ratcliffe has revealed he plans to put the Blues on equal footing with Real Madrid and Bayern Munich if his takeover bid is successful.
Ratcliffe hopes to unseat Todd Boehly as the favourite to take over the Blues.
He also wants to increase the capacity of Stamford Bridge from 41,000 to 60,000, the BBC claim.
PSG and Chelsea comparisons
Chelsea and PSG have been compared to Man City by Luka Modric.
Real Madrid face Man City in the Champions League second leg this week.
And Los Blancos star Modric reckons Pep Guardiola’s side possess the same quality as the Blues and PSG who were both knocked out by the Spanish side in the competition’s previous rounds.
Modric said: “Tomorrow’s opponents are just as good as PSG and Chelsea are and if tomorrow’s game will be harder I can’t say.”
Former Chelsea boss’ retirement plans
Former Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti plans to retire after he leaves Real Madrid.
But he doesn’t mind sticking around for another decade if Real want him to.
He told Amazon Prime: “After Real, yes, I probably stop.
“But if Real keep me here for 10 years, I’ll coach here for 10 years.”
Victor Moses’ failed England return
Ex-Chelsea star Victor Moses nearly made a return to England with Nottingham Forest.
Moses now plays for Spartak Moscow who are domiciled in warmongering Russia.
FIFA gave players in the region to suspend contracts with their teams in March.
And Forest tried to woo Moses at the time but a transfer fell through, The Telegraph reported.
Abramovich’s sanctions delay in America
Roman Abramovich’s sanctions in America were held off at the request of the Ukrainian government.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky asked US president Biden to delay plans to sanction Abramovich who was viewed as a potential mediator with Russia, the Wall Street Journal reported.
However, the report also states that the American government refused to confirm or deny talks between Biden and Zelensky.
The same courtesy wasn’t extended to Abramovich in the UK where he was slapped with a number of sanctions.
Lukaku’s troubles discussed by Ferdinand
Rio Ferdinand has given his opinion on Romelu Lukaku’s struggles for Chelsea this season.
Ferdinand said on his podcast: “Yes, he’s had opportunities that have come and he hasn’t put chances that you would expect to put away but there is no doubt that Romelu Lukaku for me, I think he is a world-class striker as his goal record tells you just that.
“You buy him to score goals, so keep him in your team and you will score goals.
“This season is not part of what Romelu Lukaku would have drawn up as a script for himself, so I think he would shout out that he has underachieved more than anybody in the league.”
Super fans plan
Todd Boehly has revealed how he plans to build direct relationships with Chelsea fans and supporters of his other sports teams.
He said, via SB Nation: “I think loyalty programs, whether it’s Vivid Seats, Dodgers, Lakers, Chelsea, we’re all thinking about how do we have direct customer relationships that we can then build upon.
“And if a form of that comes in a ‘tokenisation’, then so be it.
“And if we have direct access to our fanbase, we can start thinking about lots of tiers of different fans that want different products.
“So we’re starting to think a lot about what is that we want to really give our ‘super fans’ and how do we develop fans.”
Jorginho is Juventus’ ‘Plan A’
Chelsea star Jorginho is Juventus’ top choice this summer.
The midfielder is Juve’s ‘Plan A’ option as they plan to bolster their squad, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
The report states that talks with Jorginho’s agent Joao Santos and Juve, are ‘already at an advanced stage’.
However, they also add that the transfer could be in jeopardy because of Chelsea’s transfer woes.
Lukaku makes Milan choice
Romelu Lukaku will reject a transfer to AC Milan, reports claim.
The Belgian striker has no intention of betraying Inter Milan for a switch to their rivals, the Evening Standard reported.
Lukaku will also turn down an approach from Newcastle, the report states.
‘Conor Gallagher has to play’
Chelsea have been urged to play the ‘beautiful’ Conor Gallagher when he returns to the club from Crystal Palace next season.
That’s the plea from Ben Foster who said on his podcast: “All I can say is, playing against Conor Gallagher, he’s a beautiful player. He’s got it, he will be a player, a baller.
“Chelsea have to play him. Conor Gallagher has shown now he can do it. He’s doing it week in week out. Honestly, he’s got everything.”
Plans for Chelsea owner
LA Dodgers owner Todd Boehly has discussed his plans for Chelsea if he takes over at the club.
He said: “We’ll have four million people coming out to Dodger Stadium this year. So, our goal is to give them the best possible experience.
“We still have the most affordable tickets in the league basically, for a stadium that’s full regularly.
“When you look at how we think about price points, and how we think about sports, we just believe they’re not making more of them, so implicit in that is scarcity value.
“We’ve been really focused on just the super big brands. In some sports like the NFL, they share all the media money. In baseball, you’re really a derivative of your local market.
“The Premier League is similar. If you look at the way it works, to be one of the big brands, you have a structural advantage. And for us, we’re always looking for structural advantages.”
Barcelona continue Chelsea raid
Andreas Christensen has agreed a five-year contract at Barcelona, according to reports.
And he could be joined by Chelsea team-mates Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso at the Nou Camp next season.
The Catalan giants are set to let go of Clement Lenglet, Samuel Umtiti and Oscar Mingueza this summer.
But they are hoping to add further reinforcements from West London with Spanish duo Azpilicueta and Alonso.
Tuch of European class
Thomas Tuchel has been branded as one of the best coaches in Europe.
That’s the view of ex-Italy coach Marcello Lippi who also admired Tuchel’s inquisitiveness.
Lippi told Football Italia: “In Europe, Thomas Tuchel, Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp.
“When Arrigo Sacchi and I met Tuchel, he asked us so many things…he wanted to learn.”
Tuch of trouble
Thomas Tuchel admitted he simply didn’t have enough substitutes to bring on Romelu Lukaku against old club Everton.
He told the Standard: “Because we brought Jorginho off.
“We only had three changes.”
The Belgian has struggled at the European champions since his move from Inter.
The striker has started just one of the past NINE Premier League games.
Who is Jim Ratcliffe?
Jim Ratcliffe is a fracking and chemicals entrepreneur who has topped chart of the UK’s wealthiest 1,000 people in The Sunday Times Rich List 2018.
The Brexit-backing businessman is the chairman and CEO of chemicals group Ineos.
He increased his wealth by more than £15billion in 2017 to take the top spot on the Sunday times Rich List.
He is the first British-born industrialist to top the list, according to a Sunday Times profile.
Ratcliffe is also the first UK-born person to top the rich list since the Duke of Westminster in 2003.
Chelsea bidder plans supporter meet
Jim Ratcliffe is reportedly still pursuing Chelsea ownership.
Todd Boehly’s consortium was selected for exclusive talks to buy Chelsea.
But Ratcliffe is pushing ahead with plans to meet with Blues supporters this week, according to Chelsea specialist Nizaar Kinsella.
The reporter made the claims on Twitter.
Pul the other one
Christian Pulisic will fit in well at West Ham if he leaves Chelsea.
Thats’ the opinion of ex-Hammers stopper Shaka Hislop.
Hislop said: “I think that would be a very good fit and a very good fit for him both in terms of where he is as a player and the type of football that West Ham play.”
Hislop’s comments come after Pulisic’s dad stated that the midfielder has had a ‘sad’ time at Stamford Bridge.
Reece James ‘deserves accolade’
Rio Ferdinand has crowned Reece James as the Prem’s Young Player of the season.
He said: “I’m going to go Reece James [for Premier League young player of the season]. I just think the importance that he has in this team, when he doesn’t play in that team now they miss him massively. He has a massive impact in that team.
“I watched him at Old Trafford the other day… he was treating some Man United players like boys. That’s how good he is, how comfortable he looks now.
“I’ve seen him on loan at Wigan playing centre-back, playing in midfield. He’s so versatile. His passing range is off the charts.
“Just his all-round general play, the composure, the physicality, his defending one-v-one. I think he’s got everything.”
Time to move on
Andreas Christensen has reportedly agreed a five-year contract with Barcelona.
And the Blues defender will receive five million a year at the Nou Camp, according to AS.
Christensen’s contract expires this summer and his exit from the club now seems certain if reports are true.
Good morning Chelsea fans
LA Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly is set to win the battle to own Chelsea despite a last-gasp bid by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Ratcliffe and his Ineos group announced they were making a £4.25billion offer to buy out the Blues.
But it emerged that Boehly’s group, which includes Switzerland’s richest man Hansjorg Wyss and has also enlisted former Chancellor George Osborne, had ALREADY been awarded preferred status.
The other two consortiums, one led by ex-Liverpool chairman Sir Martin Broughton – backed by Lewis Hamilton and Lord Seb Coe – and the other by Boston Celtics and Atalanta co-owner Stephen Pagliuca, were informed they were effectively out of the running.
However, Boehly’s team were told they had been granted a “period of exclusivity” to discuss the final terms and conditions of a takeover package.
US-based bank Raine Group, who are handling the takeover for departing owner Roman Abramovich, have determined the Boehly-led bid offers the best deal and guarantees for the future of the club.
Meanwhile, Chelsea star Reece James is reportedly open to the idea of moving to Real Madrid.
James has become a Real transfer target as manager Carlo Ancelotti looks to strengthen his backline.
According to Marca, the wing-back is among Ancelotti’s top targets ahead of the upcoming summer transfer window.
Although a move won’t be completed this summer, the England international is said to welcome the idea because he “likes” Real.
Elsewhere, Juventus want to sign Chelsea star Jorginho and are looking to take advantage of his contract situation.
The 30-year-old has a deal with the Blues until the summer of 2023 but with the West Londoners set to lose Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen for nothing this summer, they may be keen to avoid the same fate with the midfielder.
Juve made contact with the Italy international several weeks ago and could look to strike a deal, report Todofichajes.
But the Bianconeri know how important Jorginho is to Chelsea and understand they will be unwilling to let him leave.
So to persuade the reigning European champions to sell, the Vecchia Signora will reportedly offer Arthur in exchange.
Finally, Chelsea fear Mason Mount could be lured away by Liverpool or Manchester City, who could take advantage of the club’s ownership crisis, reports SunSport’s Duncan Wright.
Mount is one of the Blues’ lowest paid players on around £70,000 a week and he has just two years left on his deal but sanctions are preventing the club from offering him a new contract.
And rivals Liverpool as well as City are watching closely as concerns grow at the West Londoners’ camp that the England international could be tempted away by a more lucrative offer.
The Reds’ boss Jurgen Klopp has publicly spoken highly of his admiration for the 23-year-old and the Citizens’ manager Pep Guardiola is another major fan
Broja moving south?
Napoli have set their sights on signing Chelsea forward Armando Broja, who is on loan at Southampton.
According to Todofichajes, Partenopei manager Luciano Spalletti and the club’s board are eyeing a move for Broja.
Their current striker Victor Osimhen has been very impressive with 17 goals in 29 games this season.
It has attracted attention from across Europe, most notably Paris Saint-Germain, as well as Manchester United.
And Broja is said to be top of Napoli’s wishlist
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
