Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is reportedly looking to offload six players to Saudi Arabian clubs to help ease the club’s Financial Fair Play (FFP) issues. The players in question have cost the club a total of £230 million, and include midfielder N’Golo Kante, who is set to leave Stamford Bridge when his contract expires at the end of June. Kante has signed a £1.7 million-per-week deal with Al-Ittihad, six times what he currently earns at Chelsea. Other players being offered an escape from Chelsea by Saudi Arabian clubs include striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, defender Kalidou Koulibaly, and goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
Boehly’s connections with Saudi Arabia could prove fruitful for Chelsea, as his links with the country’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) could help push through several summer transfer deals. PIF has purchased fellow Premier League club Newcastle and are believed to have billions of pounds of assets managed by Clearlake Capital, the American-based private equity firm who purchased a 60% stake in Chelsea during the takeover.
Journalist Ben Jacobs has tweeted that “Clearlake and PIF have an excellent relationship” and that “PIF have multiple Chelsea players on their radar”. Fresh reports claim that the Saudi government’s head of football is currently in London to negotiate with Chelsea over several moves for their unwanted players.
Boehly has previously teamed up with PIF in investment projects away from football, and it was recently announced that Cain International and PIF had invested nearly £750 million into Aman Group, a company that owns luxury hotels and apartments.
Chelsea must start selling players by June 30 to keep in line with FFP rules, even though they will not be in European competition next season. Boehly has spent over £600 million on new players since buying the club from Roman Abramovich at the start of the season and must now balance the books as well as reduce the bloated dressing room of 30-plus players.
Headings:
– Chelsea owner looks to Saudi Arabia to help solve FFP issues
– Six players costing £230m set to leave Stamford Bridge for the Middle East
– N’Golo Kante departing Chelsea for Al-Ittihad on £1.7m-per-week deal
– Boehly’s links with Saudi Arabia could prove fruitful for Chelsea
– PIF driving high-profile moves to Saudi on behalf of Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Ahli
– Chelsea must start selling players by June 30 to keep in line with FFP rules