- Chelsea have spent more than £1 billion on signings over the past two seasons
- The Blues are in serious danger of breaching top-flight FFP rules
- Should Mauricio Pochettino stay or leave? It all starts Transferweek podcast
A former Man City financial adviser has claimed Chelsea will breach Financial Fair Play (FFP) limits and insists he expects the Blues to face significant punishment, including a hefty points deduction.
The Premier League’s FFP rules have come under scrutiny in recent months, with Everton deducted 10 points for breaching them in November.
Then last month they were charged again – along with Nottingham Forest – for breaching top flight licensing rules. Premier League clubs are allowed to lose £105 million over three years, with the end of each financial year falling on June 30.
Since Chelsea were taken over by a consortium led by Todd Boehly in May 2022, the Blues have spent more than £1 billion in the transfer market as they sought to revamp their squad.
They have spread the costs somewhat by using depreciation to pay the fees over several years by handing long-term contracts to players, but the Blues are still the biggest spenders in the top flight over that period.
An ex-Man City adviser has claimed Chelsea are on the verge of breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) limits
Since being taken over by a consortium led by Todd Boehly, the Blues have spent more than £1 billion
This includes spending over £100 million on both Moises Caicedo (left) and Enzo Fernandez
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And Stefan Borson, who was previously an adviser to City, felt the Blues would face repercussions for their high spending and stressed there could be trouble at Stamford Bridge.
“They used the tricks of depreciation,” he said talkSPORT. ‘(But) in my mind there are definitely problems on the horizon and they will definitely fail in the FFP for the current season.
‘This is unless, and it seems highly unlikely, they have sold well over £100 million worth of players by June 30.
“But the window where they can do that now, with the windows closing (January), will be very small.
‘The season is coming to an end and then we have the European Championship. So if you look at someone like Conor Gallagher, if Chelsea want to sell before June 30, they will have to act very quickly.
‘And again, buyers will probably know that Chelsea have to sell players.’
Borson also hinted that Chelsea could face a harsher punishment than Everton, while the way their spending came about could also influence any punishment.
He added: ‘This rift that Chelsea faces is much bigger than that of Everton.
“And most importantly, from an aggravation perspective, they (Premier League) will consider it a deliberate foul.
‘Chelsea cannot hide behind building a stadium or unintentionally violating the FFP.’
Borson added that there was still time for Chelsea to get out of the dire situation they are in, but stressed that this would be difficult as other clubs are aware of their financial situation.
Former Manchester City adviser Stefan Borson felt there was ‘trouble on the horizon’ for Chelsea
He also felt that any possible punishment could be more severe than the ten points awarded to Everton
He continued: “The accounting period is not over yet, let’s be fair to Chelsea.
“But I have people telling me you’re selling Conor Gallagher for £60 million, Armando Broja for £40 million, Reece James for £30 million, whoever it is.
‘But there are no buyers. There is no money in the game outside the Premier League and the Premier League is not stupid.
“They’re not going to bite on crazy prices for players they don’t rate very highly when they know Chelsa is over the line.”