Some top Chelsea players have reportedly expressed their dissatisfaction and regrets about penning down long-term deals with the club, MySportDab reports.
The expectations were high when Todd Boehly/Clearlake Capital became the new owner of the club, taking over from Roman Abramovich.
Since taking over the reins as Chelsea’s new owners, Todd Boehly and his cohorts have splashed a whooping £1bn over three transfer windows, signing high-profile players on record-breaking transfer fees and placing them under lengthy contract durations.
Top signings like Enzo Fernandez and Mykhailo Mudryk were tied down to eight-year contracts until 2031. Nicolas Jackson and Moises Caicedo also have contracts with the club until 2031.
Deivid Washington, Noni Madueke, Romeo Lavia, Lesley Ugochukkwu, Malo Gusto, Cole Palmer, Benoit Badashile, Djordje Petrovic, and Robert Sanchez, are all contracted to the club until 2030.
According to a report from the Athletic, some of the players, who have committed to lengthy contract durations with the club, have regretted doing so as the going on the field seems apart from the club’s project and plan as sold to them by the club’s hierarchy.
The growing discontent in the dressing room, as reported by the Athletic, is said to have arisen in the wake of the club’s 2-4 defeat to Wolves in the Premier League at the weekend.
Mauricio Pochettino apologized for the dismal result and has assured the players of his trust in their capacities to deliver for the club. However, some players are still not having the narrative and are regretting their long-term contracts.
It is understood Chelsea’s decision to tie all their signings under the Todd Boehly-era to long-term contracts was a ploy to exploit a loophole in Premier League financial fair play rules.
The elongated contract terms allow the club to spread the over-bloated transfer fees across the length of contracts of the players thereby avoiding collision with Financial Fair Play Rules.
