Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly has been criticised by Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville, drawing comparisons to former Manchester United chief Ed Woodward. It comes after a major transfer spend by the new owners at Stamford Bridge, already investing over half-a-billion-pounds in the squad over two transfer windows.
The summer saw a host of players drafted in to help solve gaps left by some key exits, though most of those haven't fulfilled expectations, with the club languishing in midtable. January had a larger focus on building towards the future, adding players that would help the current situation while having an eye towards the long-term.
A theme of such signings has been long contracts offered to the younger additions so that the large fees will be paid off over a larger period, having less of an impact on financial restrictions. While it remains to be seen how this may turn out for the Blues, Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville has questioned the approach.
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Speaking on The Overlap Live, he said: "Todd Boehly smacks of Ed Woodward when he first came to Manchester United and wanted to sign everyone. Marc Cucurella for £64million and Enzo Fernandez for £107million - that’s a full-back and a midfielder who will sit at the base of a three.
"The ceiling on those types of players - like Rodri, Fabinho, Casemiro - they are £50million-£60million positions. These aren't players that are playing in the forward part of the pitch and scoring you 30 goals, so what they’re paying for the positions, what they’re getting for the money, they just seem like strange transfers.
"I'm not saying the players are no good. They could be really good and could go on to be great. But the fees for players in those positions seem mad to me."
It's a huge claim from Neville, who has questioned Boehly before, though it is yet to be seen how this transfer business will pan out for the side. There's high risk and high reward, with the process too early to find out which side of that coin they will land on.
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