Here are your football.london Chelsea headlines on Sunday, March 27.
Chelsea bidders told to make £1billion pledge
Each of the four bidders that have advanced to the next stage of the Chelsea sale process have been told they will have to contractually agree to commit at least £1billion into the club after the takeover is complete. The money will be used for the club's development including for the Blues' Stamford Bridge stadium, playing squad and other areas of development.
The quartet of bidders that have made it to this stage are reported to be the consortiums led by Sir Martin Broughton, Todd Boehly, Tom Ricketts and Stephen Pagliuca. Each group will now be judged against a set of criteria before the next deadline, expected to be in mid-April.
This news will no doubt be a cause for some celebration within the Chelsea fanbase as it ensures the club will continue to receive similar financial backing to that it had grown accustomed to under Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.
READ MORE: Chelsea sale: Winning bidder must commit to huge £1billion cash injection after takeover
Fikayo Tomori's message to convince Tammy Abraham to come to Serie A
Fikayo Tomori has said he gave Tammy Abraham rave reviews about Serie A when he heard the striker was interested in a move to Italy last summer. Speaking to the Guardian the defender said he helped convince his former Chelsea teammate to make the move after he'd made his own switch to AC Milan in January 2021.
“When he said Roma was on the table, I said: ‘Bro this is a good league’. I felt like it would develop his game a lot," said Tomori. "He has scored a lot of goals this season for Roma, they’re fighting for a Champions League spot. Definitely, it’s helped him and definitely, I gave him rave reviews about Serie A because I enjoyed myself so much the first six months.”
Abraham has scored 23 goals in 40 appearances for Roma this season and has helped them to sixth place, with the club's supporters nicknaming him 'the Gladiator' at the Stadio Olimpico. Tomori meanwhile has been a regular for Milan when fit, making 31 appearances across all competitions so far in his first full season in Italy. The former Chelsea man is now hoping he can build on his two England caps and try to force his way into contention for a World Cup place.
“There’s just so many talented players in my position already – [Harry] Maguire, [John] Stones, [Conor] Coady, [Tyrone] Mings, [Ben] White at Arsenal – and there’s a limited amount of positions," he added. "I just have to make sure I’m playing at a high level. And then when I do get called on, to make sure I’m ready. I have to focus on what I’m doing here at Milan first and foremost.”
Chelsea miss out on 'next Manuel Neuer' due to Roman Abramovich sanctions
Chelsea's inability to sign, sell or negotiate contracts for players due to the sanctions placed on Roman Abramovich by the UK Government meant their deal to sign hot prospect goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina have fallen through. The 17-year-old Chicago Fire shot-stopper has been widely tipped to be a future great and has already drawn comparisons to legends Manuel Neuer and Gianluigi Buffon.
The Blues were reportedly in advanced stages to seal a transfer of around £5.5million for Slonina before loaning him back to Chicago until 2023. Those plans were scuppered and talks broke down when Chelsea were unable to proceed in negotiations due to the sanctions. The Polish-American keeper is reportedly of transfer interest from several top European clubs so it is uncertain whether he would still be available by the time the Blues' new owners can be confirmed.
Read more here.
