- Government fears £1.6m loan repayment could go to oligarch
- Deadline for sale of club to Todd Boehly’s consortium is 31 May
The government is concerned that the £4.25bn takeover of Chelsea could collapse because of Roman Abramovich’s alleged refusal to accept a new sale structure proposed by ministers.
With the deadline for the deal to be completed less than a fortnight away Whitehall insiders have said there are fears of Chelsea going out of business. The government is determined that none of the proceeds from the club being sold to Todd Boehly’s consortium go to Abramovich, who put the European champions up for sale when he was hit with sanctions after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
