The
government is expected to approve the Todd Boehly-led consortium takeover of
Chelsea within the next 24 hours.
They have now received legal guarantees that Roman Abramovich will not
benefit from the sale of Chelsea meaning that they can approve the £4.25bn
deal.
Sky Sports News understands that the proceeds of the sale are going into a
frozen bank account controlled by the government.
Abramovich is also sanctioned by the European Union and, as he has a
Portuguese passport, the sale has to be approved by the Portuguese
authorities. It is expected the deal will be signed off on Tuesday.
The deal will bring an end to Abramovich's 19-year ownership of Chelsea, in
which the club has won 21 trophies including five Premier League titles and
two Champions Leagues.
Boehly, co-owner of the LA Dodgers baseball team, and fellow consortium
member Hansjörg Wyss were at Stamford Bridge for Sunday's final 1-1 draw
with Watford.
The news will be a boost for Thomas Tuchel's side as they have been unable
to buy or sell players or negotiate new contracts with players due to the
restrictions imposed on Abramovich over his alleged links to Vladimir
Putin's Russia.
Abramovich put Chelsea up for sale days after Russia's invasion of Ukraine
on February 24.
Abramovich was then part of a delegation trying to broker a peace deal
between Russia and Ukraine and suffered 'symptoms of suspected chemical
weapons poisoning' during the talks.
The UK government sanctioned the oligarch on March 10 but granted Chelsea a
special licence - which expires on May 31 - to keep operating.
Talks over the sale have dragged on in recent weeks, with Abramovich having
to deny reports that he wanted the £1.5bn he loaned to Chelsea repaid before
he would sanction a sale.
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