Chelsea could be set for yet another ownership battle in the foreseeable future.
Todd Boehly and Chelsea’s majority owner Clearlake Capital are reportedly in the process of re-assessing their joint ownership status of the Premier League club barely just over two years since taking over at Stamford Bridge.
Bloomberg claims those close to the Chelsea hierarchy believe the two ownership parties are currently exploring a move to buy each other out, with the report suggesting Clearlake co-founder Behdad Eghbali and Boehly’s relationship has deteriorated in recent months.
Clearlake has a stake of more than 60 per cent of the club, with Boehly, US businessman Mark Walter and Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss making up the balance.
Several factors have been cited for causing frustrations behind the scenes, with a power struggle rumored to have emerged.
Meanwhile Chelsea are once again missing out on Champions League revenue this season, having finished sixth in the Premier League last season.
On top of that, the owners are also believed to be split on recruitment policy despite splashing over £1billion on fresh talent since taking over the club. That involves incoming and outgoing players, and out, with popular fan-favorite and academy product Conor Gallagher controversially allowed to depart the club this summer to help balance the books amid PSR concerns.
Apparently Boehly had reduced his decision-making responsibilities at the club last year, although that doesn’t appear to have assisted in arresting any of the problems.
However the suggestion is that both Boehly and Clearlake are still committed to the Chelsea project and are continuing to work on it to ensure its success, in order to justify the whopping £4.25-billion shelled out when they took over from Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich two years ago.
Abramovich had succeeded substantially in his efforts to establish Chelsea as one of England and Europe’s premier clubs in his nearly two-decade reign and now fans and staff are keeping fingers crossed that all this will not be slowly eroded under the Boehly-Clearlake ownership.
“Our vision as owners is clear: We want to make the fans proud. Along with our commitment to developing the youth squad and acquiring the best talent, our plan of action is to invest in the club for the long-term and build on Chelsea’s remarkable history of success.”
Chelsea will be back in action after the international break with a trip to the Vitality Stadium to face Bournemouth.
To date, the two-time European champions have won one, drawn one and lost one in the Premier League so far this season.