Muhsin Bayrak has made an offer to buy Chelsea from Roman Abramovich, a representative for the Turkish businessman has told the Guardian.
Abramovich put the club up for sale this week and the early favourites are a consortium headed by Todd Boehly and Hansjörg Wyss.
Bayrak, the chairman of AB Grup, a construction company, signalled on Friday his desire to strike a deal. A representative, asked by the Guardian about Bayrak’s interest, said: “Yes we definitely confirm. We have forwarded our offer regarding this to them.”
Bayrak’s interest first became known when he told Turkish media: “We are discussing the terms of Chelsea’s purchase with Roman Abramovich’s lawyers. We’re negotiating signatures. We will soon fly the Turkish flag in London.”
Sources have said there could be up to 10 interested parties in Chelsea. The first move came from Boehly and Wyss, who are in talks with Abramovich and are confident of buying the club.
Wyss, a Swiss billionaire, first revealed he could join a consortium trying to buy Chelsea to the Swiss newspaper Blick. The 86-year-old has partnered with Boehly, who part-owns the LA Dodgers. They have finalised the other partners joining them but the identity of those figures is not known yet.
It has been reported that Abramovich wants as much as £4bn but financial experts have said he is unlikely to receive much more than £2bn.
Abramovich intends to leave Chelsea in good hands and does not want his successor to be politically controversial in Britain, meaning the buyer is unlikely to come from countries such as China and Saudi Arabia.
The sale process is being overseen by New York-based bank Raine. A deadline of 15 March has been set for offers to be made. RedBird Capital partners have emerged as a potential bidder. A spokesman for the American private equity firm declined to comment on their interest in buying Chelsea on Saturday.
