Chelsea has been one of the most successful clubs in English soccer since the turn of the century, but since the Clearlake consortium purchased the club from Roman Abramovich, they have struggled to recapture their former glory. As Everton fight to avoid relegation this season, Clearlake should watch closely, because if their plans do not pan out as intended, Chelsea risk suffering a similar fate in the long-term.
Not so long ago, Everton was firmly established in English soccer’s top tier, boasting a loyal fanbase and a reputation for stability. This was a club whose success peaked in the mid-1980s when the Toffees were not just competing for titles, but winning them. Under Howard Kendall, they clinched two league championships in 1985 and 1987, adding to a haul of domestic and European trophies. Everton, as a soccer institution, was a powerhouse that few could imagine spiralling toward the bottom of the Premier League table.
Fast forward to the 2024/25 season, and Everton’s world looks vastly different. After seasons of reckless spending and poor results, they are now staring down the barrel of a potential relegation. Their financial situation has become dire, with mismanagement and overambitious signings dragging the club deeper into crisis. Despite splashing out millions in recent transfer windows, Everton’s recruitment strategy has been inconsistent, leaving them without a coherent identity on the pitch. It is a situation that few Evertonians could have contemplated 10 years ago when they became more aggressive in the transfer market after years of stability, let alone 40 years ago when they were among the very best in England. It is worth remembering that this is a club with nine top-flight titles to its name throughout the course of its history – even more than Chelsea.
In recent seasons, Everton have spent lavishly in the hope of breaking into the Champions League spots. They brought in big names – James Rodríguez, Moise Kean and Gylfi Sigurðsson, to name a few, and appointed high-profile managers like Carlo Ancelotti and Rafa Benítez. Yet, these moves failed to translate into sustained success. The spending was often misaligned with the club’s needs, leaving them saddled with players on inflated wages who could not deliver consistent performances.
Everton’s transfers reflect a broader issue in modern soccer: clubs spending wildly without a strategic vision. The money poured into star players may have brought temporary excitement, but the club’s failure to build a solid foundation has been glaring. Instead of laying the groundwork for long-term success, Everton (989.12) found themselves scrambling to stay afloat. The result: a club whose history and stature make relegation unthinkable, now battling to avoid that exact fate.
Enter Chelsea, who, under Todd Boehly’s Clearlake consortium, has embarked on a similarly aggressive spending spree.
Since the consortium’s takeover in 2022, Chelsea has invested heavily in the transfer market, breaking the British transfer record to sign Enzo Fernández and also investing in risky signings such as Joāo Félix. However, despite spending over £1 billion on players in just two seasons, the results on the pitch have been underwhelming. The Blues finished 12th in the Premier League in 2022/23 — one of their worst performances in decades — while the 2023/24 season saw them again miss out on UEFA Champions League soccer, finishing sixth. They have started the 2024/25 season reasonably well but have yet to be properly tested bar in a 2-0 loss to Manchester City.
What Chelsea (25.24) must recognise is that no club is immune to decline. Everton’s plight has shown that for a club with enormous expectations, believing they are exempt from a similar fall would be a dangerous mistake. History shows that financial mismanagement, poor recruitment, and a lack of clear soccer identity can spell disaster for even the biggest clubs.
Both previous owner Roman Abramovich and the current Clearlake consortium have sought to move the club into either a new stadium or a renovated Stamford Bridge because the club misses out on significant matchday revenue by having a stadium with barely half the capacity of Old Trafford.
However, moving in itself will be incredibly expensive, and Chelsea cannot afford to continue to miss out on the UEFA Champions League or they will find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place – unable to sustain themselves while they move into a new stadium if plans are approved by Chelsea Pitch Owners or renovate their current one, but similarly unable to generate sufficient revenue at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea may believe that they have hit their bottom already and the only way is up from here, but unless their new signings hit their stride and spend carefully and deliberately in years to come, things could get significantly worse still.
