Chelsea links with Saudi Arabia raise plenty of questions | OneFootball

Having splashed the cash over the last two transfer windows, Chelsea are on a mission to balance their books this summer.

Plenty of questions have inevitably been asked about how they would go about shifting several underperforming players off their books.

Unlikely salvation appears to have presented itself in the form of the Saudi Pro League, with several of its clubs linked with Chelsea players.

Edouard Mendy and Hakim Ziyech are reportedly on their way to Saudi clubs, while N’Golo Kante has also been tipped to move to the Middle East.

Romelu Lukaku, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Kalidou Koulibaly are other Blues players linked with moves to Saudi clubs.

While these potential moves could ease a significant headache for Chelsea, they have also sparked plenty of debate in football circles.

Central to the discussion is the relationship between Chelsea majority owners Clearlake Capital Group and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF).

The latter have billions of pounds worth of assets managed by the private equity firm, which raises questions about a conflict of interest.

PIF own Newcastle United – a factor which immediately raises alarm bells about Chelsea’s burgeoning links with the Saudis.

A more pertinent issue to consider is the growing influence private equity is having in the football industry.

While the business links between Clearlake and PIF are above board, the potential for each party to influence football decisions cannot be ignored.

Football’s authorities have largely failed to get a handle on the growing influence of states and private equity groups in the sport.

With Chelsea seemingly on the cusp of ‘conveniently’ resolving their Financial Fair Play (FFP) issues, that dereliction of duty may have a lasting impact on football worldwide.

While the Premier League giants will argue they can sell their players to whoever they want, there is undoubtedly a funny smell around the Saudi fire sale.

Unless you wander around wearing blue-tinted spectacles, it is not easy to envisage the current developments are good news for football.