Chelsea confirmed on Wednesday that Marina Granovskaia was set to depart from the club, with the club’s new co-owner Todd Boehly installing himself as her interim replacement.
Granovskaia oversaw Chelsea's recruitment under former Roman Abramovich but will follow ex-chairman Bruce Buck in leaving Stamford Bridge as part of the club's restructure at the top. In a statement released on the club's official website on Wednesday morning, the American tycoon thanked Granovskaia for her "many years of excellent service".
Boehly also stated: "As custodians of Chelsea FC, we now begin executing our long-term vision and plan for the Club, creating an outstanding experience for its passionate, loyal fans, and continuing to challenge for top honours in line with Chelsea FC's decorated history.
Working together, side-by-side, we are firmly committed to winning, both on and off the pitch. For us, that effort has begun."
The 48-year-old, who completed his takeover of the West London club in late May, will become interim sporting director and will take charge of the club's transfers in this coming summer transfer window.
Boehly is expected to have a hands on role and has already shown his power by playing a key part in Lukaku's return to Inter. The Belgian is represented by Roc Nation, a company founded by Jay-Z back in 2008, and he became their first ever Premier League client. Coincidentally, Boehly is very close with Michael Yormark who is the president of Roc Nation.
With that deal now all but finalised, his focus will now switch to bringing in reinforcements. A sizeable budget will be made available for incomings, and Boehly has already identified his two key Chelsea targets this summer.
One of those is Manchester City attacker Raheem Sterling. The England international’s ability, versatility and capacity to both score and create goals on a regular basis are key to the Blues’ interest.
Boehly is also thought to be ready to green-light a move for defender Sevilla defender Jules Kounde. The 23-year-old is seen as the ideal replacement for Antonio Rudiger who left to join Real Madrid this summer.
Confidence is high that Boehly can get these deals done and both players have profiles that could see them both seamlessly adapt to Thomas Tuchel’s 3-4-3 formation, or thrive in more tactically fluid systems next season.
After much uncertainty surrounding how their summer would play-out, it now seems Chelsea are ready to get a new-look to their side with Boehly overseeing their transition over the coming weeks.
