A London-based investment firm confirmed it has submitted an offer to buy Premier League club Chelsea.
The club has been put up for sale by its billionaire owner Roman Abramovich after he was the subject of sanctions by the UK government for his alleged ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin and the country's invasion of Ukraine.
The European and world club champions continue to operate under special, stringent conditions after the British government claimed to have proven Abramovich’s links to Putin.
The deadline for any bids to be submitted for the Premier League side came and went on Friday evening, with a number of parties understood to be contenders for a takeover.
In a statement released Monday, Centricus said it saw an opportunity to "make a long-term investment" in Chelsea and that it was "committed to supporting existing management on both the business and sporting operations".
According to The Times newspaper, Centricus has joined forces with hedge-fund manager Jonathan Lourie and Bob Finch as well as a prominent group of Chelsea supporters in attempting to seal a deal.
In quotes reported by the newspaper, Centricus chief executive Nizar Al Bassam spoke of his affection for the club he claimed was "bleeding money at a faster rate than it should be" after Abramovich had his UK assets frozen, leaving the club in limbo.
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Chelsea's Cesar Azpilicueta and Thiago Silva celebrate after beating Lille 2-1 to make the Champions League last eight. AP -
Chelsea's Cesar Azpilicueta celebrates after scoring the second goal in the 2-1 win at Lille. AFP -
Lille's Turkish forward Burak Yilmaz scores from the penalty spot. AFP -
Christian Pulisic levels the scores. Getty -
Burak Yilmaz celebrates scoring their first goal. Reuters -
Chelsea's Christian Pulisic celebrates with teammates after scoring the equaliser. EPA -
Chelsea's Cesar Azpilicueta celebrates scoring their second goal. Reuters
“I’ve had the same seats in the Tambling suite and the same seats in the West Stand for 10 years," Al Bassam was quoted as saying.
"I’m worried for the staff there when I see this turmoil. We see the same people hosting us when we walk in. They’re amazing to us. We see the same people in the stands looking after us and I’m feeling for them.
“We’ve tried to focus on a proposal which aligns the ownership of the club with long-term investors with a deep history with the club. If you look at the proposal we put forward, keeping it an entirely British finance proposal is core to that.
“There are plenty of very successful clubs financed by international investors but in this case, after two decades of exceptional success by the club, the club has the fanbase with the resources to support the club to maintain that success. That’s what’s very unique about this proposal.”
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Chelsea's Russian owner Roman Abramovich has had his UK assets frozen by the British government for his ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin. AFP -
Graffiti in support of the football club near Stamford Bridge in London, the home ground of Chelsea FC. The club's owner owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government on Thursday. PA -
A member of Chelsea Football Club's security staff walks at the entrance to Stamford Bridge, following Britain's imposing of sanctions on the club's Russian owner, Roman Abramovich. Reuters -
A board at Chelsea Football Club's stadium, Stamford Bridge, advises visitors that all tickets are sold out for the next game, versus Newcastle United, following Britain's imposing of sanctions on the club’s Russian owner, Roman Abramovich. Reuters -
Graffiti on boarding at a construction site next to Chelsea Football Club at Stamford Bridge. Getty Images -
Russian billionaire and owner of Chelsea football club Roman Abramovich. Reuters
There are already a number of known bids for the West London club. Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss and American businessman Todd Boehly lead a consortium, while property developer and lifelong Blues fan Nick Candy said last week he was part of a group that had bid more than £2 billion ($2.6bn) for the club.
Chicago Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts and his family have also confirmed their bid to purchase the club..
While their is considerable consternation off the pitch, Chelsea continue to flourish on it. On Friday the Blues secured a place in the FA Cup semi-finals with a 2-0 win over second-tier Middlesbrough hours after learning they will face Spanish giants Real Madrid in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Thomas Tuchel's side are currently third in the Premier League but do not play again until after the international break.
Chelsea v Middlesbrough ratings
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MIDDLESBROUGH RATINGS: Joe Lumley - 6, Should have done more to save Hakem Ziyech’s shot but wasn’t given much of a chance by Mason Mount’s pass to Romelu Lukaku. Did well to deny Timo Werner’s header. PA -
Anfernee Dijksteel - 7, Couldn’t keep up with Lukaku for the opener but made a superb intervention to deny the Belgian later in the half. Did brilliantly to step up and dispossess Christian Pulisic to create a chance for Duncan Watmore, then made an impressive block to stop Mount’s cross. PA -
Dael Fry - 5, Made a mess of Mount’s early cross and could have done more to make life difficult for Lukaku when the Belgian scored the opener. Did well to stop Lukaku reaching Ziyech’s cross later in the half. AFP -
Paddy McNair - 5, Along with Neil Taylor, he struggled to deal with Chelsea’s threat down the right and Mount got away from him for the opener. Was forced off injured soon after half time. PA -
Isaiah Jones - 7, Showed a lot of good energy and quality in his play whether going forward or defending. This was shown with a good recovery run to deny Christian Pulisic and helped to create overloads. Played a great one-two to get behind but saw his cross stopped by Mendy. Getty -
Matt Crooks - 6, Got into some great areas and impacted the game, but struggled to make the final pass at times. Did well to break forward before Folarin Balogun fired over. Reuters -
Jonny Howson - 6, Got through a lot of good work in the middle and was integral to a period in the first half where Middlesbrough were momentarily on top. Hit a shot comfortably over the crossbar. AFP -
Marcus Tavernier - 6, Showed plenty of energy and did a lot of good work for the team. Hit a dangerous free-kick that Lukaku headed over. Reuters -
Neil Taylor - 4, Struggled to deal with Chelsea’s threat down the right and was easily beaten by Ziyech for the Blues’ second. Didn’t offer much going forward. Getty -
Folarin Balogun - 4, Anonymous for most of the first half and couldn’t react quickly enough to get his header on target when a chance did come. Hit a terrible shot after a good move. AP -
Aaron Connolly - 4, Made a great run behind Thiago Silva that didn’t eventually lead to anything but struggled to impact the game much outside of that. AP -
SUBS: Sol Bamba (Fry, HT) - 7, His first tackle was a good one to stop Lukaku breaking through. He then made a big header to stop a cross reaching the Belgian and did well to block Werner’s shot. AFP -
Lee Peltier (McNair, 53’) - 6, Did well to block Mount’s shot and was solid, though he was second to the ball a few times. Reuters -
Marc Bola (Taylor, 58’) - 6, Got into a good position to cross but slipped at the vital moment. Impressed with a lot of his play and even brought out a nice drag back. Getty -
Josh Coburn (Balogun, 74’) – N/R, Put himself about brilliantly to make things uncomfortable for Chelsea. Did fantastically to get behind the Chelsea defence before hitting a cross that tested Mendy. Getty -
CHELSEA RATINGS: Edouard Mendy - 7, Confident whenever called upon and remained aware throughout the game. AP -
Cesar Azpilicueta - 8, Looked comfortable when he had the ball in tight areas and defended well throughout the game. Did brilliantly to dispossess Watmore when it appeared the substitute might break through. Action Images -
Thiago Silva - 8, Key to breaking Middlesbrough’s press for the opener and defended confidently throughout. Had a header that trickled past the Middlesbrough post. Getty -
Antonio Rudiger - 7, Mishit his volley in the opposition box but was his typically solid self in defence and gave very little away. AP -
Malang Sarr - 7, Did well to deal with Middlesbrough’s overloads on his side in the first half and played a great pass to Mateo Kovacic to get the team going for the second goal. He looked stretched at times in the second period. Reuters -
Mateo Kovacic - 8, Put in an impressive display in midfield and was wonderfully intricate at times. He played an integral part in the move for the Blues’ second goal. PA -
Ruben Loftus-Cheek - 7, Recovered after slipping on the edge of his own box but didn’t learn and lost the ball a matter of minutes later, being incredibly lucky that Middlesbrough couldn’t capitalise. Didn’t let that derail him and put in a confident performance, especially in the second half. PA -
Mason Mount - 8, Made a great run and pass for the opener, then played the ball to Ziyech for the second in a display that had Taylor and McNair struggling to keep up with him. Did brilliantly to create the opening for Timo Werner’s chance. AFP -
Hakim Ziyech - 8, Had a great weight of pass for Mount in the buildup to the opener, then cut inside Taylor and fired into the far corner for their second. Looked very confident throughout. AP -
Romelu Lukaku - 7, Applied the finishing touch for the opener having hardly seen the ball beforehand and was unlucky to see his shot cleared off the line by Dijksteel. Did well to head Tavernier’s free-kick at the other end. Action Images -
Christian Pulisic - 4, Largely cut a frustrated figure in the first half, as was encapsulated when he slipped towards the end. Conceded possession on the edge of his own box having been anonymous in the second period but was lucky to see Watmore sky his effort. Was brought off soon after. AFP -
SUBS: Timo Werner (Pulisic, 69’) - 6, Was unlucky to see his header saved then had a shot blocked by Bamba. Was positive in his play. AFP -
N’Golo Kante (Kovacic, 69’) - 6, Moved the ball well and made a good burst up the pitch. PA -
Kenedy (Ziyech, 82’) – N/R, Almost played through Harvey Vale but his pass was cut out. AP -
Harvey Vale (Lukaku, 84’) – N/R, Will have been pleased to get on the pitch, but things could have been so much better as some through balls aimed in his direction were cut out well. Had drifted offside when the ball did reach him. PA
