Chelsea aren't used to being second fiddle. It isn't normal to be told no. It feels like it didn't happen too many times under the Roman Abramovich era, but making this about owners would be wrong. There's nothing Todd Boehly could be doing more.
The new American owner, already out of his depth as acting interim sporting director, a first for modern football in itself, is leapfrogging around Europe to help Thomas Tuchel catch up in the transfer market. It may seem frantic, but there's sense in the madness of it all.
Boehly has negotiations to make up for, contacts to create, and he wants to enjoy it for himself and the benefit of his new club. But the 2022 summer transfer window has already been a strange one, and that's without Chelsea's lack of action thus far.
