N’Golo Kante’s impending departure from Chelsea for Al-Ittihad and the prospect of several colleagues following him to the Middle East has thrust Saudi Arabia’s growing influence in football under the spotlight.
The potential flow of players from the big-spending Stamford Bridge club to the Gulf state has raised eyebrows in recent days amid allegations that the move could be a ploy to help it meet Financial Fair Play requirements.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look recent developments and how the Premier League could be affected.
Why are Chelsea offloading players?The Blues have spent over £600million on players since American businessman Todd Boehly completed his takeover in May last year, including a £106.8million January swoop for World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez. They also splashed out £52million for RB Leipzig striker Christopher Nkunku earlier this week.
Sales of the likes of Timo Werner and Jorginho have offset that expenditure only minimally and with the club having reported a loss of £121million for the 2021-22 season, Financial Fair Play rules which dictate that clubs can only make losses of £105million over three seasons are an issue.
Which players are reportedly involved?Kante’s departure to the Gulf state may not be the last from Chelsea. Kalidou Koulibaly, Edouard Mendy, Romelu Lukaku, Hakim Ziyech and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have also been linked with switches to Saudi clubs.
They are not alone either – Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves is expected to complete a move to Al-Hilal with former Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo’s switch to Al-Nassr in January having established a clear pathway.
Why are so many players heading for Saudi Arabia?The money on offer may have something to do with it. The Middle East state’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, took controlling stakes in four Saudi Pro League clubs – Al-Ahli, Al-Ittihad, Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr – earlier this month as part of the wider ‘Vision 2030’ plan to diversify the Saudi economy. The country’s rulers also believe a thriving professional sports scene will help drive up grassroots activity levels in the kingdom.
The Saudis have signalled their intention to mount a bid to host the 2030 World Cup, and raising the standard and profile of the domestic league could prove crucial to that mission. PIF has the financial clout to recruit big names to the cause with Karim Benzema having already agreed to join Al-Ittihad.
It is not the first time an emerging league has adopted similar tactics. Pele, Franz Beckenbauer and Bobby Moore all played in the North American Soccer League at the end of their respective careers, while China has lured a host of top-flight stars to its Super League in recent years.
Public Investment Fund – that name sounds familiar?It should. PIF holds an 80 per cent stake in Newcastle United, who have invested in excess of £250million in new signings since the Amanda Staveley-led consortium in which it is the major partner completed its buy-out at St James’ Park in October 2021.
The Magpies surged to a fourth-place finish in last season’s Premier League and secured Champions League football for the first time in 20 years to the delight of a fanbase which has been reinvigorated despite concerted criticism over the source of the club’s new-found wealth.
PIF, whose governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan is Newcastle’s chairman, is also a key player in the controversial merger between the LIV Golf series and the PGA and DP World Tours which has prompted fresh accusations of sportswashing.
Why all the fuss about Chelsea?This is where it gets interesting. Private equity firm Clearlake Capital Group provided around 60 per cent of the funding for Boehly’s £2.5billion takeover and has underwritten much of the investment since; PIF is an investor with Clearlake. Financial experts have suggested such is the size of Clearlake’s portfolio that while some PIF money may form part of its holding in Chelsea, there is no direct link and therefore no risk of breaching Premier League rules which prohibit ownership of two clubs. However, the perception in some quarters is that any existing relationship between the Blues, the sovereign wealth fund and the four domestic clubs it now controls could allow them to sell on players for inflated fees and thereby reduce their FFP burden.
What has been said about the situation?Former Manchester United and England defender Gary Neville, co-owner of League Two Salford, is unimpressed. Speaking to BBC Sport, Neville said: “The Premier League should put an instant embargo on transfers to Saudi Arabia to ensure the integrity of the game isn’t being damaged. Checks should be made on the appropriateness of the transactions.”
Cabal becomes second Juventus defender to suffer ACL injury
Juventus' Juan Cabal will undergo surgery after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee, intensifying the Serie A giants' defensive injury crisis.
The 23-year-old was forced to return to Turin after injuring his knee during training with the Colombia national team ahead of their World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Ecuador.
Cabal is the second Juventus defender to suffer an ACL injury this season after Gleison Bremer, who hurt his left knee during their 3-2 Champions League win over RB Leipzig last month.
Cabal has so far made nine appearances across all competitions this season.
Juventus are sixth in the Serie A standings and 11th in the Champions League's new-look league phase.
Real Madrid hit Twente for seven, five-star Wolfsburg also win big
Real Madrid had six different goalscorers as they trounced Twente 7-0 in the Women's Champions League on Wednesday, while Wolfsburg beat Galatasaray 5-0.
Signe Bruun opened the scoring three minutes into the Group B encounter at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano, then Maria Mendez's header gave Madrid a 2-0 half-time lead.
Madrid, who had won one and lost one of their opening two games in the tournament, got a third through Naomie Feller five minutes into the second half, then Caroline Weir made it 4-0 with a brilliant free-kick.
Mendez headed home her second of the encounter shortly after the hour mark, while Oihane Hernandez and Carla Camacho got on the scoresheet late on to complete the rout.
The victory took Madrid second in the Group B standings ahead of Chelsea's trip to Celtic.
Wolfsburg were also convincing victors in Group A, getting off the mark for this season's competition as Rebecka Blomqvist scored a hat-trick in their 5-0 thrashing of Galatasaray.
The Bundesliga side – who failed to pick up a point or score a goal in their opening two matches – had a narrow 1-0 lead at half-time through Joelle Wedemeyer, before Blomqvist took centre-stage in the second period.
She tapped home after Janina Minge struck the crossbar, then added her second goal in the 77th minute and her third six minutes into stoppage time.
Vivien Endemann powered home a fifth for Wolfsburg one minute later, as they provisionally moved within three points of Lyon and Roma ahead of their meeting.
Amorim will 'change the energy' at Man Utd, says Fernandes
Ruben Amorim has been backed to "change the energy" at Manchester United by club captain Bruno Fernandes.
Amorim officially took the reins as United head coach on Monday, with Ruud van Nistelrooy having served as interim boss after Erik ten Hag was sacked last month.
The 39-year-old enjoyed a wildly successful four-year spell in charge of Sporting CP, which began in March 2020, two months after the Lisbon giants sold Fernandes to United.
Amorim delivered two Primeira Liga and two Taca da Liga trophies during his time at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, recording a 71% win rate through 231 matches at the helm (164 wins, 34 draws, 33 losses).
In the Primeira Liga, they won 77% of their games under him (120/156), the best win ratio of any team across Europe's top 10 leagues since he took charge.
Amorim's first game in charge of United will be a Premier League trip to Ipswich Town on November 24, and Fernandes has faith that he can change their fortunes.
"I hope he does the same here because you know sometimes a person can change the energy of a space, if it's the right moment," Fernandes told United's media channels.
"We hope this is the right moment for him to come and bring his energy, bring his qualities and his knowledge of football, because he's done something really, really special at Sporting.
"If someone doubts that, it's about just looking at the past. Sporting was to be about 20 years without winning the league, and he got back to win the league, and he won it two times in four years with a really youthful team, in a moment of change.
"So hopefully he can do the same here for us and [hopefully] it's going to be a successful time for all of us."
Amorim will become the youngest coach to lead United since a 33-year-old Wilf McGuinness took charge of them on Boxing Day 1970 against Derby County, and Fernandes believes one of his main strengths is his man-management style.
"Obviously for me, what stands out as I said to you is the connection he has with the players," Fernandes added.
"I've seen many, many moments where players were struggling and he kept his faith in them. He always goes to the press conference and defends his players.
"He had a really youthful team so they needed that and hopefully when he comes here he can do the same again with the youth.
"Us players with the most experience, we have to help him to get that and get the best out of every player at this club."
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