Roman Abramovich sets two demands for Chelsea buyers

Roman Abramovich is demanding that Chelsea’s new owners continue to invest in the squad and pledge to redevelop Stamford Bridge, according to reports.

Last week, the 55-year-old announced that he has put Chelsea up for sale, claiming that the decision is in the club’s ‘best interest’.

Abramovich has opted to sell Chelsea following the threat of sanctions from the UK Government, which has already targeted Everton investor Alisher Usmanov.

It’s understood that the Russian billionaire, who bought Chelsea for £140 million in 2003, has set a £3 billion asking price.

According to Sky Sports, up to 10 parties are considering submitting an offer to buy Chelsea, with American investment bank The Raine Group tasked with handling the sale.

But the report claims that Abramovich is also keen to find the right buyer for Chelsea, as he wants the new owners to continue to replenish the squad with new signings, as well as oversee a revamp of the stadium.

The cost to redevelop Stamford Bridge is likely to be a key factor in negotiations between Abramovich and Chelsea’s new owners as it’s estimated that the project would cost in the region of £2.2bn.

Chelsea had acquired planning permission to build a 60,000-seat stadium on the site of Stamford Bridge, but Abramovich shelved those plans in 2018 after he suffered delays in the renewal of his visa to enter the UK.

Last week, reports claimed that a Swiss-American consortium is leading the race to buy Chelsea and the group are growing increasingly confident that a deal can be reached in the coming days.

The consortium is spearheaded by Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss and US tycoon Todd Boehly, who owns parts of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Lakers.

Abramovich has also announced that he will write off the £1.5bn in loans that he is owed by Chelsea.

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