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Chelsea spent £65m on agents this season — £26m more than any other club Premier League’s biggest spenders on intermediaries for third year running also announce pre-tax losses of £262.4million — the highest in English football history https://www.thetimes.com/sport/football/article/Chelsea-spending-agents-record-losses-premier-league-qzqnc2cb7 Chelsea were the highest-spending club on agents’ fees for the third consecutive year as the Premier League set a new record for payments to intermediaries. Overall, the 20 Premier League clubs spent a record £460.3million in 2025-26, up 12 per cent on the previous year. Chelsea splashed out £65.1million and were also the biggest spenders on agents in the previous two years, £60.4million in 2024-25 and £75.1million in 2023-24. The FA published the figures on the day that Chelsea confirmed that last season they made the biggest loss ever recorded by a Premier League club, at £262.4million. Aston Villa were the next highest spenders on agents at £38.4million, followed by Manchester City (£37.4million), Liverpool (£33.8million), Arsenal (£32.1million) and Manchester United (£31.7million). The amount a club spends on payments is likely to become an increasingly important factor in complying with the Premier League’s new financial rules, as well as Uefa’s. The new squad cost rule that comes into force next season will mean clubs are limited to spending 85 per cent of their revenue on wages, agents’ fees and transfers — Uefa’s limit is an even more restrictive 70 per cent. Chelsea’s financial losses for 2024-25 eclipse the previous record of £197.5million, set by Manchester City in 2011, but they have passed the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules because they posted a profit of £128.4million in the previous year’s accounts, boosted by the sale of the women’s team to a sister company, Blueco Midco, for £200million. ' Chelsea said the losses were attributable, in part, to increased operating costs in 2024-25 compared to the previous year. Revenue was £490.9million, the second-highest on record for the the club, and included some of the prize money from winning the Club World Cup last summer. About one third of the £86million that Chelsea earned in prize money from winning the Club World Cup was paid to the club in 2024-25, with two thirds paid in this season’s financial year. Last year Chelsea were fined £30million for breaching Uefa’s financial rules, but that is understood to have been included in the 2024-25 losses. Chelsea have spent about £1.5billion on transfers since the Todd Boehly/Clearlake Capital consortium bought the club from Roman Abramovich for £2.5billion in 2022.

Roman Abramovich’s new move to defy government over Chelsea cash Former owner, who insists frozen £2.35bn from selling club should go to victims of conflict worldwide rather than just Ukraine, to register charitable foundation https://www.thetimes.com/sport/football/article/roman-abramovich-Chelsea-ukraine-charity-foundation-bbxjmbhmr A move to break the deadlock over Roman Abramovich’s frozen £2.35billion from the sale of Chelsea will be made this week with an application for a new charitable foundation to be registered without the government’s permission. The plan for a foundation to support victims of conflict worldwide will be submitted to the Charity Commission. The government has previously refused permission to register a foundation because it is insisting the money will remain frozen unless Abramovich agrees for all of it to be spent only inside Ukraine. Abramovich’s representatives insist that was never the agreement over the proceeds of the Chelsea sale. They also say that a criminal investigation launched by authorities in Jersey continues to be an obstacle to him agreeing for the money to be released. Sir Keir Starmer has threatened legal action unless Abramovich agrees to release the money according to the government’s demands. A spokesman for Abramovich told The Times: “Our understanding is that a foundation is in the process of being registered, which we welcome. Mr Abramovich maintains his intention to donate funds to humanitarian causes once the relevant legal obstacles are resolved.” The submission will be for a new charity, to be called the Foundation for Victims of Conflict, and it will be headed by Mike Penrose, a former Unicef executive who has been trying to establish a foundation since the Chelsea sale in 2022. Penrose said: “I can confirm that I am preparing a submission to the Charity Commission to register a new foundation dedicated to supporting victims of conflict worldwide. I am confident in the strength of the board I have assembled, which brings together individuals with significant experience in humanitarian work across the globe. “The application will be submitted this week. The foundation’s objectives are aligned with those set out in the deed of undertaking, and we are hopeful that, once the relevant legal matters are resolved, the foundation will be in a position to receive a donation.” The foundation’s stated objectives will be to provide “humanitarian assistance to people in need anywhere in the world who are victims of conflict” by giving grants or other support to relief organisations. Read more Roman Abramovich lawyers warn Starmer: Don’t confiscate £2.35bn from Chelsea sale The web of offshore companies that allowed Chelsea to cheat the system Abramovich was sanctioned by the British government after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, on the basis of the Russian-born billionaire’s links to Vladimir Putin. His lawyers have written to the government saying that it “appears to be treating this proposed donation [to the foundation] as a form of punitive measure” against him. The money remains frozen in the British bank account of Abramovich’s company Fordstam Ltd. Chelsea announced on Wednesday that their pre-tax loss for 2024-25 was £262.4million. The previous highest annual loss for a Premier League team was Manchester City’s £197.5million in 2010-11.

Ashley Cole opens up on enjoyable 'whirlwind' start to his managerial career in Italy - but admits that even having an Italian wife hasn't helped with the language https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-15700579/Ashley-Cole-whirlwind-managerial-career-Italy.html Cole is married to Italian model Sharon Canu (right) but admits he needs to improve his knowledge on the language Ashley Cole has opened up about his 'whirlwind' first two weeks in charge of Serie B side Cesena FC, and the nature of how difficult it has been to settle into life at his new club. Cole took his first leap into management in mid-March when it was announced that he would be taking over at Cesena, leaving his role as Lee Carsley's assistant at England Under-21s. Cole, who has a win percentage of 50 per cent from his first two games in charge, has also served as Frank Lampard's assistant at Everton and Chelsea, and held the same role at Birmingham City when Wayne Rooney was in charge. But now he wants to 'prove a lot of people wrong' in his new role as the No 1. 'It's been quite a whirlwind but an enjoyable one,' Cole told the Could It Be Magic? podcast. 'Lost my first game, an eye opener, but got the opportunity three days later to play at home in front of our fans, and a good three points were needed. Keeps us in the playoffs. I am really enjoying it so far.' One of Cole's closest allies, Carsley, admitted that he had seen signs of 'frustration' from the former Chelsea full-back at a lack of managerial opportunities in English football before his move to Italy. And the retired England full-back, who played 107 times for his country, is keen to establish himself as a manager by doing things his own way. 'I have to be different,' he continued. 'I can't be like the other managers (out there). It was important that I have to find my way in the game a little bit. But the players have got to believe in me and trust me. 'The second game didn't start as well as we wanted. We had moments in the game where we looked good, and then you go 1-0 down, and you feel like, oh, here we go again. 'You get a little respite at half-time. It was important for me to give a team talk and get the players to still trust in what I'm asking them to do, but just do it better and quicker. Second half, we come out and see a lot of positives, and then we win the game 3-1. 'It's a great opportunity to get closer to the fans because it has been hard. I'm kind of an outsider coming into their club. Everyone will say "no experience" - that's the label I get. So it has been hard. 'I still have to prove a lot of people wrong. It was my second game, my first game at home. It was a little taste of what's to come. But a lot of work to do.' This isn't the first time Cole has moved to Italy in a professional capacity. In 2014, he left Chelsea for Roma, spending just two years in the country's capital. Shortly after his move to Rome, he met his wife Sharon Canu, with whom he shares son Jaxon, seven, and daughter Grace, five. However, despite having been with the Italian model for 12 years and having lived in the country before, adapting to life back in the country is proving tricky for Cole. He added: 'I think the language is massive. It is important, and I struggled to get a number two. I literally jumped in the puddle, jumped in the mud, and just went… I'm just going to have to go. It was an opportunity I couldn't turn down. 'And I was like, that is what it is. You know, you have to sink, or you swim, and right now it's looking all right. It's tough because I've never been in this position. I didn't know what to expect. 'It's been hard getting around the language a little bit. I lived in Italy for a year and a bit. My wife is Italian, but I don't really practice speaking it. So you know going back to the basics again of understanding the little words to get me by. 'But now I need to continue to have conversations with players and just tighten up on my language a bit. But doing the 11 v 11 stuff, I didn't do too much 11 v 11 as an assistant. 'So that would probably be the main difference, really, where you set up your team, how you are going to press, when you get in a mid-block? Are you going to set up. Are you going to be aggressive. Defend your box? It's like a lot of details to get in. 'But like I said you know it is a challenge. But I've watched and been around enough coaches and managers to understand it and pick it up quite quickly. So yeah, it's been good for you.' Cesena are currently eighth in the Serie B, with just six games of the regular season remaining.

here is the full archived Daily Heil article from that tweet https://archive.ph/NBfps Chelsea went above and beyond to protect Enzo Fernandez and he has thrown it back in their face - no wonder insiders are frustrated. This is how they should deal with him, writes KIERAN GILL Enzo Fernandez has been flirting, and not too subtly. Doesn’t know what will happen this summer with Chelsea. Can’t believe they ever split with Enzo Maresca. Would love to live in Madrid, always tell the wife that. Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, what legends they are. There’s keeping it real, and then there’s keeping it Real. The main surprise is nobody on social media used April Fool’s Day to circulate fake quotes claiming he would like to name his next born after Florentino Perez. Parking this mischief behind the microphone for a moment, there has been some criticism of Fernandez’s conduct around his Chelsea team-mates. How he is prone to publicly rebuking other players, as he did with Filip Jorgensen after his mistake in their 5-2 Champions League loss away at Paris Saint-Germain. How he is vocal in the changing room after losses, including their 3-0 Premier League defeat by Everton before this international break. That’s no crime. Sometimes, leadership calls for such shows of strength. It shows the passion of the player, the will to win and the hatred he has for losing. The messages he has been sending into the sphere via the media, though? Therein lies a problem for Chelsea because now, Flirtin’ Fernandez must return to his club. Now, he is supposed to be focused only on winning their FA Cup quarter-final versus Port Vale on Saturday to get to Wembley Stadium and the seven games left in the Premier League to qualify for the Champions League. Now, he is supposed to wear the captain’s armband in the absence of the injured Reece James. Fernandez is Chelsea’s vice-captain, but Liam Rosenior has a decision to make – either he allows the 25-year-old Argentinian to continue to don that armband, or he does not. It would send a message if he decided to go down the latter route, loud and clear. Maybe Rosenior will decide it is fine, but there has to be a consideration, as there will have been at Tottenham Hotspur when their captain and Argentina team-mate Cristian Romero was speaking up. Rosenior has already spoken privately with Fernandez once – two weeks ago after the midfielder cryptically said ‘we will see’ when asked if he will still be with Chelsea next season. Fernandez told Rosenior that words can get lost in translation. That same argument is unlikely to stand up now. If Fernandez has grown disillusioned with what is happening at Chelsea, that's fine, because we can all have our own opinion on their strategy. If he is itching for improved terms, that’s fine also, because he has seen others receive new deals as rewards since signing three years ago. Whatever the motive, however, there are ways of letting this be known privately rather than publicly. Chelsea showed a great deal of faith in Fernandez after Argentina’s 2024 Copa America triumph when he was filmed singing a controversial song, his club team-mate Wesley Fofana describing it as ‘uninhibited racism’ at the time. Fernandez apologised, and a month later, Maresca handed him the armband in a 2-0 Premier League loss to Manchester City, on the first day of their 2024-25 season and with Fofana in the same lineup. Chelsea further protected their player after that controversial saga. Fernandez wasn’t put up for any of their pre-match press conferences in the Conference League that campaign, nor did we get to speak with him in the mixed zone after games, just in case we asked him about that chant. That may add to the club’s feeling of frustration now, given what has happened during this international break. Chelsea were not involved in Fernandez’s interviews conducted while on duty with Argentina. Which is fine, usually, because the understanding is that those called up by their national teams will only answer questions to do with their countries, not their clubs. That’s the general agreement, and it works both ways. He doesn’t speak about us while he’s with you, and we won’t speak about you while he’s with us. That line has been crossed here. Chelsea insiders are disappointed. The relevant federation, in this case the Argentine FA, are supposed to recognise if the interview is the right one for their player, and outlets have used the opportunity to quiz Fernandez on Chelsea, Madrid and his future. Fernandez is not the only one to have spoken up over this international break, of course, but others did it differently. Marc Cucurella criticised Chelsea’s strategy, but came across as respectful in doing so, as if he wanted the best for his club. Moises Caicedo, when asked on his future, said he is only focused on Chelsea and would like to become a legend at Stamford Bridge. Fernandez is a fine footballer, and an important cog in Chelsea’s team. Rosenior cannot suddenly stop using him when he needs to win games and fast, including at home to League One bottom club Port Vale in the FA Cup quarter-final on Saturday after a four-game losing streak in all competitions. When Fernandez next scores, maybe he will kiss the badge, pat it, perform a love heart to the supporters, though it will be hard to read too much into such gestures if so. On January 10, 2023, he scored for Benfica in a 2-0 win over Varzim, and celebrated by pointing to his chest and then to the turf, as if to suggest he was staying. Twenty-two days later he was signing for Chelsea in a British-record £106.8million move. Fernandez tried to force through that transfer, including by personally phoning Benfica president Rui Costa, who later accused the midfielder of showing no commitment to his employers. Fernandez is something of a performative player. Particularly when Chelsea are losing, we have seen him start scraps, as if to show his passion to the frustrated fans. It might be time for Rosenior to do some performing of his own, namely by handing the armband to someone who has not spent the last weeks inviting speculation on his immediate future.

We’ve turned into an actual laughing stock under this ownership

Don’t have a problem at all with Cucu’s comments the other day. He said himself that he’s happy here and seems to genuinely appreciate being a Chelsea player whilst also just telling the truth about how the players feel. Also don’t have a problem with him saying he’d have to genuinely think about it if Barca were to come in for him. For a Barca product that’s impossible to ignore. What Enzo is doing is straight up disrespectful. As shambolic as the ownership situation is and has been during his time the club still made a massive effort to sign you, paid an insane fee, the supporters stuck by you when you struggled badly at times, and you’re the vice captain. For him to be out here in front of cameras any chance he gets whoring himself for Real Madrid is spitting in our faces.

Couldn’t give one single solitary fuck about it. Enzo is bang average and can fuck off for all I care but I hope he continues to express his desire to leave. Tell everyone how shit the project is. I want to see BlueCo burn !! Burn it all down.

Who’s ready for Marc Cucurella to be ‘injured’ for the rest of the season before being shipped out…View the full article

He's a mouthy fucker and so called vice/captain, he should know better. Sell him, he's not that good anyway

Apparently berated some of his team mates. Didn’t think he had it in him to be fair although to be fair he should have been on the receiving end of this stuff a lot also. Didn’t think any of them had it in them and honestly, would rather some of them did something like this every now and then than sat sulking like little girls. Shows they have a bit of personality and character. Would imagine that will be enough for BlueCo to spin a he was toxic in the dressing room PR move and sell him. Cucurella will be sold no doubt, given his more recent comments about wanting to win/Barcalona. Plus his wages. Again they’ll spin it some way. Palmer situation is worrying also but what did these owners expect?

Eduardo Conceição

Enzo just gonna run his mouth about his desire for Madrid out in the open to the media everyday, huh? Again, I’ve loved him as a personality and at times as a player but tbh he can fuck off this summer. Get a huge fee and replace him with a more athletic midfielder and we probably upgrade our team.

💥🔵Palmeiras confirm they rejected €25m offers for 16-year-old forward Eduardo Conceicao. Chelsea reportedly made contact with the player's representatives. (@UOL)

bullshit.

Arsenal warned for Timewasting after 1 minute 😅 Must be some kind of record

Sam Kerr is back.

UEFA CL Quarters Got to overturn a 3-1 1st leg deficit v Arsenal tonight -

lol, I knew this was coming after the clean sheet that Japan kept against England: Chelsea may have just found the answer to their goalkeeping woes during international break https://www.thechelseachronicle.com/columnist/Chelsea-may-have-just-found-the-answer-to-their-goalkeeping-woes-during-international-break/ One position Chelsea fans are desperate to see their side upgrade is goalkeeper, and they should certainly of taken note of Zion Suzuki’s performance for Japan against England. Robert Sanchez enjoyed a strong start to the season, but has started to falter of late, with his place in the starting side no longer a given under Liam Rosenior. The new boss has been keen to give Filip Jorgensen a chance, although he let his side down during the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16 against PSG. Zion Suzuki is the answer to Chelsea’s goalkeeping woes Suzuki is a regular for Parma outside of a broken hand he suffered earlier this season, and was on top form for Japan in their first ever win against England. While Cole Palmer struggled for the Three Lions, Suzuki kept a clean sheet and made three saves to deny a star-studded side for Thomas Tuchel. He also knew when to get rid of the ball and play long, with there never any hairy moments when the ball was at his feet. Playing out from the back is important to Rosenior’s style of play, and an area where Sanchez simply doesn’t live up to standards. The Blues can address this with the signing of Suzuki, who has appeared on the radar of a number of top clubs in the past. Chelsea hold prior interest in Suzuki Despite Chelsea not actually making any recent signings to address the goalkeeper situation, they have certainly been linked with plenty of names who could have been Sanchez replacements. One of these is the Japan international. Chelsea have sent scouts to watch Suzuki in Italy on previous occasions. At 23 years of age, the Blues would not be breaking their policy of signing younger players rather than those with more experience. However, there are reports that Chelsea owners are willing to tweak their transfer strategy following comments from current player Marc Cucurella questioning their methods.

Imagine Estevao slowly blooded into a serious XI. The circus right now could even stall his development

Agreed men, what a travesty this whole thing. And we got fooled, but then again we had little choice because under the condition things happend. It was a force sell and the one doing the selling just went for the highest bidder.

? Are you keeping an eye on current affairs? They have spent all the money. BlueCo took out two huge loans to fund the insane spending that occurred over the last 4 years. Loans with double digit interest! We are now a sell to buy club. If we can’t sell all of the deadwood which is already becoming a problem with it being seemingly harder and harder to shift the likes of Disasi & co. It will leave us with no other option than to sell the bigger named stars to fund any further purchases which we all know won’t be spent on the players needed but rather a shit load of 16 year olds again. There is no ‘attacking the summer window’. Just look at how they ‘attacked’ the summer just gone.. the perfect opportunity to build on the CWC success. This ownership doesn’t care about building something substantial geared towards obtaining the biggest prizes. It was all a fugasi, a lie, bullshit to keep the fans on tender hooks until they make enough profit out of an inflated club sale. The players like Enzo, Cucu, Caicedo & Palmer were all sold a dream that ultimately the owners are not delivering on and to top it off, are literally saying they don’t care about it and doing it publicly for all to see