The seemingly imminent takeover of Chelsea from Roman Abramovich looks set to be delayed after concerns over the renovation of Stamford Bridge were raised. Each interested party has had to provide evidence of funds to improve the ground moving forward, but now concerns among bidders have emerged over the potential cost of the project.
Upgrading the ground to compete with other elite European sides has long been on the agenda in west London, with Stamford Bridge currently capable of holding just 45,000 people. It is significantly fewer than the likes of Tottenham, Arsenal and Manchester United, let alone Barcelona and Real Madrid, but due to its location, upgrading the Bridge will be a far trickier and costly project.
Consortiums led by Todd Boehly, Sir Martin Broughton and Steve Pagliuca are the bids still in contention to buy the Blues, with the Ricketts family withdrawing from the process after protest from supporters. Abramovich has decided to sell the club and the process has continued despite the Russian being sanctioned for alleged links to Vladimir Putin.
