Chelsea owner Todd Boehly chuckled about his role at the club the other day, admitting that he could possibly do a good job as a striker. Boehly’s remarks were made at the Qatar Economic Forum, against the backdrop of reports of internal struggles between his faction and Clearlake Capital.
The latter is the majority shareholder of Chelsea with a 61.5% stake. Boehly personally owns a 12.8% stake. Meanwhile, he is reported to be keen on purchasing the stake of co-owner Behdad Eghbali for an estimated cost of £2–3 billion.
Boehly replied to demands to play an expanded role within the Stamford Bridge hierarchy by stating:
“Increase my role? I think chairman is a pretty good one! I can’t play! Maybe I’ll go as striker, see how the fans think about that!”
It is worth noting that Chelsea fans have loudly protested against the Boehly-Clearlake administration. The new owners have struggled to take the Blues back to the echelons of European football, despite spending over $1 billion.
Chelsea Battle For Champions League Qualification
On the pitch, Chelsea also have a mammoth week. The Blues finish off their Premier League campaign with a match against Nottingham Forest. It would seal the Champions League qualification for next season, should they win it.
That precedes the UEFA Conference League final against Real Betis on May 28 in Wrocław, Poland. Manager Enzo Maresca has grumbled about uneven timetabling, and this is no surprise. The Blues have their final league game on May 25 while Real Betis rescheduled to have their final La Liga fixture planned for May 23. This gives the Spaniards another 48 hours of preparation time.
With regards to squad choice, Maresca has commented that goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen will start the Conference League final. He has been a permanent fixture in the competition. The squad is, however, without a striker up front. Christopher Nkunku and Marc Guiu have trained but may not yet be fit enough to play. Nicolas Jackson has been suspended from the next league match.