The mood around Todd Boelhy’s Chelsea is already so very different to the ridiculous regime under Roman Abramovich.
Distant, disconnected and, at times, farcical with his perpetual human ring of steel to belie his ‘man of the people’ spin, Abramovich was nothing of the kind. Fans during that spell obviously couldn’t care less as he financed signings and bankrolled success in the Premier League, Europa League and Champions League.
But Boelhy is already giving off signs of being an even more complete package. Rock up at the Chelsea team hotel here in Beverly Hills and you aren’t greeted with the kind of absurdity that so often surrounded Abramovich.
Boelhy and his key men like to talk - shock, horror! It’ll never catch on. The American has already created a favourable impression with his willingness to engage and shoot the breeze at the hotel and during training.
At Chelsea’s University of California HQ here, Boelhy’s Clearlake associate, Jose Feliciano, could be seen in the thick of staff, players and journalists being human.
It is all a refreshing change from the ridiculousness of Abramovich. A departure from the Silent Stan approach of Kroenke at Arsenal and the overall absenteeism of the Glazers at Manchester United.
Supporters want their custodians to be approachable. The money and the ambition is just a part of it.
So expect Boelhy to be clear and present throughout the Chelsea journey. Expect the vibe to be different from the 18 years of being kept at arm’s length from touchy, litigious Abramovich. Suddenly there is accountability at Chelsea. A voice from the top here in London rather than a press release from overseas.
Boelhy has already started the process of making good on his promises to keep the team competitive. Raheem Sterling at £47.5million is a stunning capture from Manchester City.
Napoli colossus Kalidou Koulibaly is a terrific defender and an outstanding replacement for Antonio Rudiger. Good luck to Premier League strikers trying to find space between him and the highly-decorated Thiago Silva.
Should Boelhy land pacy Presnel Kimpembe from PSG and Nathan Ake from City, Chelsea will have themselves a formidable defensive base to build on. Little wonder then, that the mood in the camp right now is so upbeat while the mood among fans, particularly on social media, has until now been so apprehensive.
Billionaire Boelhy, a hugely successful businessman in his own right, has not come in to mess around. His due diligence has been done, his trusted advisers Behdad Eghbali and José E. Feliciano, Clearlake’s co-founders, have sized up the transfer landscape and they are already starting to correct some of the mistakes made by Abramovich’s former chief negotiator, Marina Granovskaia.
In her latter years the Russian cancelled out her previously shrewd dealings with some questionable decision-making. Allowing Rudiger and Andreas Christensen respectively to join Real Madrid and Barcelona on free transfers after driving a hard transfer bargain did not reflect well on her.
Nor did the £45million spent on misfiring Timo Werner, the £100million on Romelu Lukaku or the £36million Hakim Ziyech. Even Champions League matchwinner Kai Havertz, you’d have to admit, was overpriced at £72million.
None of that is the German forward’s fault as he continues to make good progress in Chelsea colours. In fact, by the looks of things, he will be part of a fine team this season under Boelhy’s stewardship.
But it is the American’s work off the pitch, however, that has not gone unnoticed. Chelsea almost look human again.
