Frenkie de Jong has passed his latest Chelsea audition with flying colours as Todd Boehly closes in on a £70million transfer with Barcelona still no closer to resolving their financial predicament regarding the Manchester United target.
The Blues have so far spent have spent over £150million already this summer on five new recruits. Two of those have been for the future, but Raheem Sterling, Kalidou Koulibaly and Marc Cucurella all featured in the opening Premier League fixture over the weekend against Everton.
With over £300m forecast in expenditure before the September 1 deadline, rival supporters and pundits alike have questioned just how the American owners have been able to sanction such a big financial outlay whilst not much has been generated on the outgoing side of things to date.
READ MORE: Chelsea news: Second Frenkie de Jong transfer hijack planned as Aubameyang recommendation made
And with Wesley Fofana and Frenkie de Jong next through the door in what could be a double transfer operation totalling close to £155m million, eyebrows will be raised to the feasibility of all of this business with FFP in mind. "Historically while Chelsea are the biggest spenders in the Premier League, they have also generated the most money from player sales over the years," Football Finance expert Kieran Maguire told The Athletic.
"Last season you saw Fikayo Tomori and Tammy Abraham going to Italy (AC Milan and Roma respectively for combined £59million). When academy players like them leave for big money, that is pure profit. When you’re signing players, you are spreading the cost over the length of the contract. So if Chelsea spend £300 million this summer, the amortised cost per year is probably going to only be around £50million-£60 million. They have made a profit of more than that last summer (Romelu Lukaku’s £97.5million fee amortised over five years, while sales were in excess of £100million). People also just focus on the money being paid and ignore the fact that FFP is based on a three-year assessment period.
"It’s taken me by surprise because I didn’t think Boehly-Clearlake would go down this route - to spend, spend, spend. To put it into context and with the help of an inflation calculator I came up with, the first year under Roman was effectively worth a lot more. Admittedly that was in the pre-FFP era but it won’t be excessive by Chelsea’s standards."
With FFP concerns all cleared up, Boehly now has the green light to be able to sanction these next two expensive transfer operations and what Barca's No.21 did in their final pre-season outing may just speed up that process despite Thomas Tuchel's recent statement. Alongside fellow Chelsea target Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, both players netted against Mexican side Club Universidad Nacional (UNAM) but one certain moment during the 90 minutes wowed the Blues supporters on social media.
In the 53rd minute, De Jong displayed his ability to turn with the ball and drive at players, running from the edge of his own box and taking on a couple of players before playing sublime through ball that almost saw his side add another goal. It was one thing noticeably absent from the Jorginho and N'Golo Kante axis at Goodison Park over the weekend.
No wonder Barca President Joan Laporta is said to be considering finding a way to keep the Holland international amid the ongoing financial dispute. However, if the latest reports are to be believed, the 25-year-old is 'close' to accepting he will have to leave the club as Chelsea, Man United and Paris Saint-Germain all eye a move.
Chelsea fans: Is Frenkie de Jong all too similar to Mateo Kovacic in terms of their playing styles? Leave your thoughts in the comments section. below!
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