Behdad Eghbali and José E Feliciano look set to reshuffle the pack at Stamford Bridge with the expected departure of Laurence Stewart, who works as a co-sporting director alongside Paul Winstanley.
Chelsea Co-Owner Behdad Eghbali (M) and sporting directors Paul Winstanley (L) and Laurence Stewart (R) are seen after the Carabao Cup Third Round match between Chelsea and Barrow at Stamford Bridge on September 24, 2024 in London, England
Chelsea co-owner Behdad Eghbali (middle) alongside co-sporting directors Laurence Stewart (left) Paul Winstanley (right).(Image: Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images)
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Chelsea sporting director Laurence Stewart will leave the club by mutual consent, football.london understands. He initially joined the Blues as a technical director back in October 2022 before becoming a co-sporting director alongside Paul Winstanley in February 2023.
While at the helm of the recruitment department, Stewart oversaw the investment of €1.4bn (£1.2bn) in players such as Moises Caicedo, Pedro Neto, Joao Pedro, and Morgan Rogers, as well as €1.3bn (£1.1bn) in player sales, including the departures of Kai Havertz, Conor Gallagher, Noni Madueke, and Enzo Fernandez.
Earlier this year, Behdad Eghbali made a rare public appearance at CAA's World Congress of Sports event in Los Angeles, where he addressed the need for change at Stamford Bridge after a turbulent start to life under BlueCo ownership.
"There is a plan," insisted the Blues co-owner back in April. "We reflect on the plan. We try to improve the plan and tweak the plan if it's not working. The message is we're committed. Can this be successful without winning? The answer is no. We've got to win."
When quizzed on recruitment, Eghbali admitted: "I think we've done a few things right, a lot of things right. We've got to be better on a few things: to add more ready-made players at this part of the project, to take (it) to the next level, to be consistent over time.
"We recognise we need balance. You tweak a model, you improve, you learn from mistakes."
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