Silent threat as big guns make noise to buy Blues
Evening Standard|March 15, 2022
As rivals reveal interest there is a sense a major player could be lurking in the wings
James Robson
Silent threat as big guns make noise to buy Blues

FROM the Chicago Sun Times last week came what felt like a sombre warning for Chelsea fans.

“Cub owners go from crying poor to trying to buy Chelsea FC," read the headline for what was a withering takedown of the Ricketts family and their perceived failure to invest in the baseball team they own.

Meanwhile, from Saudi Arabia, comes news of a £2.7billion bid for the European champions, which is believed to be the highest offer yet.

A consortium fronted by American billionaire Todd Boehly and British property tycoon Jonathan Goldstein has already tabled their bid and are said to be emerging as a leading contender to buy Chelsea, while British property billionaire Nick Candy has also made clear his intentions to buy the club he has supported since childhood.

The problem for Chelsea fans is they just do not know what they will get.

These are dizzying and confusing times. And for the fans who still insist on singing Roman Abramovich's name despite his ties to Vladimir Putin, pictures of him sitting in an airport lounge in Tel Aviv yesterday must have felt like seeing an ex-pop up on your social media feed. Amid all the uncertainty engulfing the club, it feels like a given that the next owner will not be as benevolent as the Russian, who has written off £1.5bn in personal loans to fund his grand design of transforming Chelsea into a footballing superpower.

Perhaps that is why news of the Saudi Media Group-led consortium's interest has generated such excitement among sections of fans. Perhaps only they could match the sort of spending that enabled Abramovich to complete the full set of major trophies during his 19-year-rule.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 15, 2022 من Evening Standard.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة March 15, 2022 من Evening Standard.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

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