The “spend now, ask questions later” approach under Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital continues apace at Chelsea. Having already splashed out upwards of £127m on João Félix, David Datro Fofana, Andrey Santos, Benoît Badiashile and Mykhailo Mudryk this month – all this after an outlay of more than £260m in the summer – they are now close to signing Noni Madueke from PSV Eindhoven for £35m. They have no intention of stopping there, however, determined as they are to bury Graham Potter under an avalanche of players. It seems they have now made an inquiry about Yves Bissouma, though Tottenham have given them little encouragement over a deal that could have included Hakim Ziyech moving the other way.
The club have also met resistance in their pursuit of Moisés Caicedo, with Brighton rejecting a bid worth £55m for the Ecuador international. No matter as, if Caicedo proves too expensive, Chelsea plan to snaffle a midfielder on loan instead. How can their spending possibly fit within financial fair play rules? Something to do with amortisation and contracts which last the best part of a decade. Don’t worry, no doubt the accounts department have it all figured out.
