Prospective Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is said to want to sign Reece James and Mason Mount to long-term contracts as soon as he takes control of the club.
Boehly is thought to be concerned about the contract status of several Chelsea players, with a number of key players having only a few years remaining on their contracts. At the end of the season, Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger are expected to leave on free transfers. Marcos Alonso, a Spanish defender, has expressed his desire to join Barcelona, and long-serving captain Cesar Azpilicueta is anticipated to follow suit.
According to Goal, the American has made tying down England internationals Mount and James a primary goal. Both players have been linked with exits from the club, with the latter recently drawing attention from Real Madrid.
Despite an injury-plagued second half of the season, Mount and James have been two of Chelsea’s important players this season, with Mount producing 12 goals and 15 assists and James adding six goals and seven assists.
Boehly, a millionaire, is ready to gain ownership of the London club after his group agreed to a £4.25 billion buyout deal. The transaction is scheduled to close by the end of the month, but it must first be approved by the government and the Premier League.
The agreement was announced in a statement published by Chelsea on Saturday morning. “Chelsea Football Club can confirm that arrangements have been reached for a new ownership group to buy the Club, led by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter, and Hansjoerg Wyss,” it said.
“Of the overall investment, £2.5 billion will be used to buy the Club’s shares, with the revenues going into a frozen UK bank account with the goal of donating 100% to philanthropic organizations, as stated by Roman Abramovich.” The funds will need to be moved from the blocked UK bank account with the consent of the UK government. In addition, the prospective new owners would spend an additional £1.75 billion in the Club’s benefit. This includes money for the Chelsea Foundation as well as improvements at Stamford Bridge, the Academy, the Women’s Team, and Kingsmeadow.
“Subject to all requisite regulatory clearances, the deal is scheduled to close in late May.” At that time, more information will be supplied.”
The new owner was on hand to witness his new team lose a 2-0 lead to draw with Wolves at Stamford Bridge. After Wanderers captain Connor Coady leveled with the game’s final kick to extend the Blues’ losing record to three games, the businessman was seen putting his head in his hands.
