RAHEEM STERLING is one of the Chelsea players who will NOT lose a penny in Todd Boehly’s cost-cutting plans.
SunSport revealed yesterday the Blues face problems in the dressing room as the co-owner slashes wages following the club’s Champions League exit.
But the move does not apply to everyone in the squad.
Sterling signed for Chelsea last July but BEFORE American Boehly insisted on all new contracts containing a 30 per cent penalty clause.
The measure was later put in place by the club to ease the pain of failing to qualify for the lucrative competition.
But Sterling and at least one other new player — believed to be defender Kalidou Koulibaly — will avoid taking a heavy financial hit as a result of the Blues’ poor season.
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Chelsea lost their Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid on Tuesday and are 17 points adrift of the top four in the Prem, necessary to play in next season’s tournament.
They look set to play their first season with no European football since 2016, triggering a huge drop in revenue.
The incoming pay cuts are causing significant unrest in the dressing room — with some paying the price for failure in Europe and others not.
Sterling’s contract only underlines the current confusion at Stamford Bridge, while Boehly battles to build a sustainable long-term business model.
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The England winger was the first major signing under the new regime which took over from Russian Roman Abramovich last May.
Sterling joined on July 14 for £47.5million from Manchester City as a marquee transfer on a five-year deal.
Koulibaly came a day later on a four-year contract for £35m. Wesley Fofana, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Marc Cucurella and Carney Chukwuemeka were signed later.
Boehly then brought in a further six senior first-team players in January during a record spend that added up to around £600m for the season.
The wage bill is £300m per year. Boehly is hoping to shave £100m off that with his salary sacrifice plans.
And the American is also looking to offload a raft of players this summer to reshape the massive squad and to stay within the rules on Financial Fair Play.
Now the likes of Christian Pulisic, Hakim Ziyech, Aubameyang, Mason Mount, keepers Kepa Arrizabalaga and Edouard Mendy and even Kai Havertz could be sold to help balance the books.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
