As two sides with genuine PSR concerns – and there are plenty whose ‘concerns’ are simply expectation management – Chelsea and Man United have had relatively quiet Januarys so far.
With a few hours to go until the cut-off, United’s only signing has been Patrick Dorgu for £28m from Lecce, while Chelsea have made no new additions.
St-Etienne midfielder Mathis Amougou is believed to be on the verge of a deadline day move to Stamford Bridge, however, and a £17m deal for Dario Essugo is also said to be close.
Both clubs have had greater outgoings by volume and significance.
United have loaned out two massive earners in Marcus Rashford and Antony. Chelsea meanwhile have sold Cesare Casadei, while Ben Chilwell and Axel Disasi are expected to have loan deals before 11pm.
At one point, it looked as though Chelsea and United could execute one of the quasi-swap deals that were so common in the summer, with Alejandro Garnacho and Christopher Nkunku trading places.
It is no surprise to see Chelsea reign in the spending after blasting over £1bn since Todd Boehly and Clearlake bought the club in May 2022, sparking the PSR anxieties that led to talk of the quasi-swap.
The masterplan was always to build a significant squad base, tying a core group of young players to long-term deals to lock in market value, foster buy-in to the Chelsea cause and guard against wage inflation.
The owners aren’t at the end of that cycle yet. The fact that Boehly is scheduled to remain in post as chairman until 2027 provides some indication of the timescales in mind for BlueCo.
After that juncture, it is likely that Behdad Eghbali or Jose Feliciano will take the wheel, although the mood music in SW6 suggests they’ve been in the driving seat for some time anyway.
The two Clearlake supremos and the faction led by Boehly have different visions for Chelsea, including on issues as fundamental as the future of Stamford Bridge.
Boehly wants to move to build a new stadium at Earl’s Court, whereas Clearlake favour a rebuild on the existing site. The Chelsea Pitch Owners will be key in deciding which direction the Blues go.
In another corner of London, developments in the world of sports business may provide some insight into what is happening at Boehly HQ and his future plans in the capital.
Todd Boehly and Glazer family lose bid for London Spirit
Football is far from Boehly’s first sports venture.
The private equity titan has stakes in Major League Baseball World Series champions LA Dodgers, who are breaking all manner of spending records at present, while he also co-owns the NBA’s LA Lakers.
He also invests in dozens football-adjacent enterprises and is generally a giant in the sports business ecosystem.
He had indented to make the Hundred cricket franchise London Spirit the latest addition to his portfolio, getting into bed with Chelsea equity partners Mark Walter and Jonathan Goldstein in the bidding war.
But as relayed by BBC Sport, their offer was knocked back in favour of a £145m package from a group of Silicon Valley billionaires.
In the end, as well as proposals from the Glazer family who remain the largest ownership faction at Man United, their offer was roundly beaten.
It had been suggested that Boehly’s interest in London Spirit might signal that he planting a flag and going nowhere in the boardroom battle with Eghbali.
However, it appears that is no longer a factor in the dynamic behind the scenes.
Will Clearlake buy Boehly out at Chelsea?
As Bohely himself only owns around 13 per cent of Chelsea while Clearlake own more than than 60 per cent, Clearlake may simply ride the saga out.
For Eghbali and Feliciano, there may be no reason to spend several hundred millions of pounds to buy out a fellow shareholder when they can outvote him at shareholder meetings in any case.
Mark Walter and Hansjorg Wyss are Boehly biggest allies in the Chelsea boardroom.
However, their alliance is more fragile than Clearlake’s coalition. It clocks in at less than 50 per cent equity and there are no guarantees they would back Boehly sufficiently to buy out Eghbali and his peers.
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