Alonso: Chelsea's ambition is clear after the end of the Ball era
London - AFP - Spanish manager Xabi Alonso said his team, Chelsea, currently sixth in the English Premier League, has a “very clear” ambition after Clearlake Capital fully acquired the London club, ending the tenure of American Todd Boehly.
The two American billionaires had previously partnered with Clearlake to purchase the club from Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich in a deal mandated by the British government in May 2022.
Prior to the transaction, the private equity firm Clearlake held a 61.5 percent stake in the club, while Boehly and Walter shared the remaining shares with another investor, Swiss billionaire Hans-Jörg Wyss.
The “Blues” manager, who took charge on July 1 last year, told reporters that the change was “an important day for the club.” He added: “Thank you to the previous owners for what they did. I wasn’t here, but I know they played an important role,” on the eve of Chelsea’s match against Brentford to open the fifth matchday of the league on Friday.
Alonso continued: “Now that Behdad has greater, almost complete control, I think it’s good to have a clear principal figure.”
He added: “I have a very good relationship with Behdad. He came to Madrid to explain the project to me and convince me, and we are working well together.”
He further stated: “We know where we want to be, and we know that everything takes time, but the ambition is very clear.”
Since the acquisition (when Clearlake became the majority shareholder) in 2022, Chelsea’s best league finish was fourth place in the 2024-2025 season, the same season in which the club won the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup.
Chelsea finished last season in a disappointing tenth place in the Premier League, prompting them to sign Alonso, former manager of Spain’s Real Madrid and Germany’s Bayer Leverkusen, during the summer transfer window to revitalize a squad that had failed to meet the club’s expectations. However, the London club has had a mixed start this season, collecting seven points from their first four league matches.
