Is this the right way to run a football club?

Some Chelsea fans believe manager Enzo Maresca is just a puppet for owner Todd Boehly. AFP Photo

Paul Kennedy

The best way to describe Chelsea FC right about now is simply, a car crash. There’s more drama at Stamford Bridge than you’d find in a South Korean soap opera.

On the pitch, it was no real surprise to see them lose to Manchester City last weekend, but off it, there is real disharmony at the club.

Raheem Sterling never even made the match-day squad, forcing the striker’s representative to issue a bizarre statement one hour before kick-off saying they wanted ‘clarity’ about his role at the club.

And Enzo Fernandez, who last month sparked huge controversy when a video surfaced of him singing racist chants about the French, has been named club captain.

If Hannibal Lecter was available, chances are Chelsea would appoint him team doctor and give him a long-term deal.

Now as the rules of football state clearly, from a non-Chelsea fan perspective, it’s obviously hilarious to see the mega-rich west Londoners implode in spectacular fashion, but I do feel a little bit sorry for their supporters.

The finger of blame points firmly in the direction of their owner, American businessman Todd Boehly.

He’s spent more than US$1.5 billion on new players and they still look like a team of strangers with no decent striker and a very dubious goalkeeper.

Boehly seems to be trying to reinvent football. A scattergun approach signing all and sundry without giving any actual thought to building a team.

And don’t get me started on contract negotiations. Boehly’s latest deal saw Cole Palmer sign a new, wait for it, nine-year contract. That’s just bonkers.

I’ve listened to one or two of their supporters calling TalkSport to have a pop. Some say new manager Enzo Maresca is simply a puppet, with no real say in who the club are buying or selling.

If that’s the case, then Chelsea are in more trouble that I thought.

Chelsea currently have a total of 42 players in their first team pool with 191 years left on their currently contracts.

The club say that as the contract term agreed by a player is long, the wages they are paying is relatively low by Premier League standards, with added incentives written into the deal.

These long-term contracts have also helped Chelsea when it comes to complying with Premier League and UEFA financial rules as the cost of a transfer fee can be spread in accounts over a maximum of five years.

Now don’t get me wrong, Todd Boehly is clearly a far better businessman than I’ll ever be. His bank balance in comparison to mine will prove that beyond reasonable doubt.

But this approach to running a Premier League football club is high-risk and I don’t think it will end well at Stamford Bridge. VNS