Neville calls on Premier League to urgently investigate Saudi trading
Gary Neville demands the Premier League urgently investigate Saudi Arabia’s big-money deals for Chelsea and Wolves players, insisting the governance of English football is a ‘MESS’
- Gary Neville is unimpressed with the amount of Saudi money in English football
- A number of star players are being signed for eye-watering sums this summer
- READ: Why exactly are Saudi Arabian clubs rushing to buy Chelsea’s cast-offs?
Gary Neville wants the Premier League to launch an immediate investigation into the huge sums of money Saudi Arabia is pumping into English football during the transfer window.
The Saudi Pro League is on an aggressive recruitment drive with a number of Chelsea’s stars, as well as Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves, closing on moves to the Kingdom.
There are question marks around ‘fair market’ and aiding clubs with Financial Fair Play rules, and Neville is convinced that a regulator is needed ‘asap’ to sort the ‘mess’ that is engulfing English football.
Neville wrote: ‘Any chance the Premier League can look into this Saudi trading like NOW!!!
‘Get a Regulator in asap that’s agile enough to stop these things at source! If it doesn’t look right it’s probably not right! Independence is required asap. The Governance of our game is a mess!’
Gary Neville (right) took to Instagram (left) to demand an investigation into summer trading between Premier League teams and Saudi Arabian teams so far in this transfer window
Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal have submitted a £47m bid for Wolves captain Ruben Neves
Hakim Ziyech is among a number of Chelsea players attracting interest from Saudi Arabia
Chelsea are one club that urgently need to trim their squad in a bid to satisfy FFP, having spent £600million on new signings in the Todd Boehly era.
The Blues were placed on a UEFA watchlist of 19 clubs whose finances would be ‘monitored closely in the upcoming period’ last September after accounts for the 2021-22 campaign revealed a net loss of £121.3m.
Mail Sport revealed last year that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund – which owns 80 per cent of Newcastle United – are major investors in Chelsea’s majority shareholder, Clearlake Capital. PIF have billions of pounds of assets managed by Clearlake.
Clearlake bought 60 per cent of Chelsea in a £4.25billion takeover last year with Boehly leading the consortium.
Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly (above) recently visited Saudi Arabia as the Blues look to offload their cast-offs to the Saudi Pro League
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, headed up by governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan (above), has control of four Saudi teams and are major investors in Chelsea’s majority shareholder
Chelsea sources insist there was no Saudi involvement in the purchase of the club and, therefore, no potential conflict of interest with Newcastle competing in the same competitions.
At the moment, it’s Chelsea’s cast-offs who are being tempted by the eye-watering sums of money on offer to go and play in the Middle East Kingdom.
Blues midfielder N’Golo Kante is closing in on a move to Al-Ittihad, the reigning Saudi Pro League champions, and will be paid around £86million-a-year.
Al-Hilal, the club rejected by Argentine star Lionel Messi earlier this month, are trying to convince Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly to join them on £25m-a-year.
Cristiano Ronaldo is the Saudi Pro League’s biggest star and plays for Riyadh-based Al-Nassr
Al-Nassr, who caused a sensation by signing Cristiano Ronaldo back in December, have offered winger Hakim Ziyech the opportunity to double his salary in Riyadh.
And outcast striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who scored just three times for Chelsea after joining from Barcelona last year, is reportedly another Saudi target.
Wolves star Neves has also joined the chorus of players being linked to the Middle East – with the Portuguese star closing in on a shock £47m switch to Al-Hilal.
The Molineux skipper is thought to be keen on the move after losing faith that Barcelona – his first choice – would solidify their interest in him.
Neves joined Wolves in 2017 and has been one of the most important figures in their rise from mid-table Championship club into established Premier League outfit.
With only one year left on his contract, Neves knew Wolves were keen to sell this summer.
The deal would also ease Wolves’ worries about Financial Fair Play as it eclipses the £45m they received from Liverpool for Diogo Jota three years ago.
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