Chelsea £127m ‘bombshell’ has been ‘unearthed’ – Keith Wyness
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness is “concerned” by allegations claiming Chelsea have sold their training ground in an intra-company transaction.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, the 66-year-old – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – suggested the Blues have “stretched” the valuations to avoid punishment under the Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
According to football finance expert Stefan Borson (12 May), Chelsea have attempted to sell their Cobham training ground in an intra-company transaction.
It is claimed that the sale may be the reason for recent reports claiming the Blues no longer need to sell players for PSR reasons before 30 June to avoid a potential points deduction.
Chelsea have already attracted fury from top-flight fans for selling two Stamford Bridge hotels for £76million in an intra-company transaction.
Chelsea have ‘stretched’ fair market valuation after new ‘£150m’ development, says Wyness
Football Insider revealed last month (18 April) that the Premier League are still investigating Chelsea for a potential rule breach in relation to that transaction.
Wyness told Football Insider‘s Insider Track podcast: “This has become quite an interesting story.
“We’ve had the hotel story, and now we’ve got the training ground.
“I’ve got to say, it seemed pretty straightforward in that they were selling assets back to themselves.
“It seemed to be okay. But there is a concern that the Premier League aren’t looking into the valuations involved.
“I’ve got to give credit to Stefan Borson, a recently published PSR expert who unearthed this bombshell.
“He’s done some digging and it turns out that the land registry details for the Cobham training ground aren’t very clear. That’s another area of concern.
“Back in 2015, it was worth about £23million. Now they claim it is worth about £150million in 2024.
“There are very few facts available, but it does seem there is a stretch in the valuations and whether they are fair market value.”
In other news, Chelsea to accept £35m forward offer this summer.
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