Chelsea are not "off the radar" for financial fair play (FFP) breaches despite their amortisation techniques, according to finance expert Dan Plumley.
Since Chelsea were taken over by American businessman Todd Boehly in May 2022, the Blues have spent over £1billion in transfer fees, raising serious questions over whether the club is at risk of breaking the Premier League's financial regulations.
Much of the money has been spent on acquiring young talent on lengthy contracts, and though results have been well below par since Boehly's arrival, it seems the appointment of Mauricio Pochettino prior to this season is starting to pay dividends, with Chelsea finally on an upwards trajectory with an eye on European qualification.
Plumley has explained that while the lengthy contracts given out by Chelsea are helping them in regards to FFP, they may still have work to do if they are to adhere to UEFA's laws and therefore be allowed to play in their competitions, having been fined £8.6m by UEFA prior to this season.
"The thing that Chelsea did to protect themselves from that particular issue with profit and sustainability is the long contracts that were delivered to those players," Plumley told Stats Perform.
"Yes, there were some high fees, but there were also long contracts. You have to divide the transfer fee by the contract length in terms of number of years, and that's the charge per year for FFP.
"They were mindful of the regulations moving forward. And they've managed to sell a few players in accounting terms for pure profit that have come through the youth system.
"But that doesn't mean they're fully off the radar. I get the sense that they should be looking at having their house in order in that regard.
"We've got UEFA's regulations that if they want to get back into the Champions League, they have to conform to as well. They will need to be mindful that both the Premier League and UEFA have regulations moving forward."
Chelsea are one of a number of clubs reportedly toeing the line in relation to financial regulations, though it is potential indiscretions from the past that may cause them issues in the near future, with the stewardship of previous owner Roman Abramovich under investigation.
Plumley explained those potential wrongdoings, saying: "There's obviously the separate case with Chelsea at the minute around the past ownership and some of the things that have been looked into there in terms of potentially where some of those payments went.
"There's some allegations here that some of the payments have gone to other organisations and in some cases other football clubs from the previous owner of Chelsea when they were under the control of Roman Abramovich.
"That's a separate case in that regard, in terms of something a little bit different because payments from one club and Chelsea's link to the ownership structure from a time gone by to other clubs and other connected parties."
Sporting Kansas City v Minnesota United: Ramsay aiming to regain momentum after 'dent'
Eric Ramsay is hopeful Minnesota United's latest defeat has not dented their momentum as they prepare to travel to Sporting Kansas City in MLS.
Minnesota have won two and lost two of their last four MLS matches, with those two victories both coming on the road.
They are ninth in the Western Conference after losing to FC Cincinnati in their last outing, failing to mount a comeback after two first-half goals from their visitors.
Ramsay was slightly disappointed by the result but is determined to take the positives from that game as they continue their playoff push.
"We showed some naivety [against Cincinnati] with the goals we conceded, but the game as a whole was largely very good," he said.
"We went toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the whole division. We have to take that as a positive and use that as a step forward, as a continuation of the momentum that we've built so far and not let it dent what we've already done."
Meanwhile, Sporting are 12th in the league, having lost just one of their last five league matches.
They beat Colorado Rapids 4-1 last time out, with Alan Pulido netting a brace, and head coach Peter Vermes was delighted to see him getting in on the goals.
"Alan has this level in him and has great form over the past two months, but we're playing him in better places on the field," Vermes said. "We haven't found enough chances to get him in on goal, and we need to keep improving that.
"The good thing is that we have options, we're not stuck. We're limitless right now, we have a lot of different ways in which we can put different combinations of players on the field."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Sporting KC – Alan Pulido
Pulido scored twice in Kansas City's win over Colorado on Wednesday, his seventh multi-goal game for Sporting.
The only two players in club history with more multi-goal regular season games are Dom Dwyer (10) and Digital Takawira (eight).
Minnesota United – Kelvin Yeboah
Kelvin Yeboah scored from the penalty spot on Wednesday, with three of his four goals this season have been via penalty kicks.
Yeboah is the fourth player to have 3+ penalty kick goals in a season for Minnesota, with Darwin Quintero being the only Loons player with more (four in 2019).
MATCH PREDICTION: SPORTING KANSAS CITY WIN
Sporting KC have won 10 of their 11 all-time home matches against Minnesota, including the last four in a row. Minnesota's lone result at Sporting was a 3-0 victory in the 2020 playoffs.
Indeed, Kansas City have won three straight home matches across all competitions, with all three victories coming by multiple goals. This is the first time Sporting have won three straight home games, all by 2+ goals, since a four-game run to start the 2019 season.
However, after going winless in eight straight on the road (D2 L6), Minnesota have recorded back-to-back wins away from home. The longest road winning streak in club history in all competitions is three matches, achieved in both 2022 and 2023.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Sporting KC – 46.8%
Draw – 26.4%
Minnesota United – 26.8%
Al-Ettifaq 0-3 Al-Nassr: Ronaldo scores as Pioli earns first win
Stefano Pioli won his first game in charge of Al-Nassr, with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Al-Ettifaq on Friday.
Cristiano Ronaldo netted the first goal of Pioli's reign as Al-Nassr picked up just their second win in the Saudi Pro League this season.
It was a fairly even first half until Abdullah Madu fouled Sultan Al Ghannam in the box, and Ronaldo made no mistake from 12 yards to put the visitors in front.
Angelo and Talisca were both denied by the goalkeeper before half-time, but Al-Nassr doubled their lead with the first shot of the second half, as Salem Al Najdi scored a delightful chip from a tight angle in the 56th minute.
Talisca did get his goal in the 70th minute, beating Marek Rodak for power with his low drive after being picked out by Sadio Mane.
Ronaldo almost got a second late on, but with just one minute remaining, he struck the woodwork with a long-range strike.
Data Debrief: Pioli inspires total dominance
Al-Ettifaq were unbeaten coming into this game, but they offered little in terms of fight, mustering just six shots, two of which were on target, and created just 0.44 expected goals.
Al-Nassr on the other hand, tested Rodak with half of their 14 shots on target (1.83 xG) - Talisca had the most (five) and was rewarded for it with his late goal.
It was Mane who pulled the strings though, creating four chances, and claiming two assists, while his 18 passes into the final third were the most of anyone on the pitch.
Joshua 'must' beat Dubois to set up Fury showdown, says Jones Jr
Anthony Joshua must beat Daniel Dubois to set up a showdown with Tyson Fury, says former heavyweight champion Roy Jones Jr.
All eyes will be on Wembley this Saturday as Joshua aims to climb back to the top of the division against IBF world heavyweight champion Dubois.
The Briton returns to the ring six months after his second-round triumph over Francis Ngannou, extending his unbeaten run to four fights after consecutive losses to Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua has once held the title he will fight for this weekend, beating Charles Martin in two rounds back in 2016, going on to retain it for five fights while also claiming the WBO, WBA (Super) and IBO titles in the process.
The 34-year-old's return to the top faces its sternest test under the Wembley arch, with Dubois winning the IBF title against Filip Hrgovic in June.
While the pressure of fighting in front of a post-war record 96,000 spectators in London is weighing on the Briton's mind, there are also expectations for Joshua to deliver a victory to set up a long-awaited clash with Fury.
The pair have exchanged in a war of words over the years but have yet to settle it in the ring, with the Gypsy King set for a rematch with Usyk in December after his split-decision loss to the Ukrainian in May.
And Jones Jr, who won 66 of his 76 professional fights, believes Joshua has to win against Dubois to give British boxing fans the fight they have been craving.
"Well, he's hungry. He's still searching for direction. And, I think he found a good direction with the training he has now," Jones Jr told Stats Perform.
"So, hopefully, he can come back and get back to the form of what people want to see.
"Because even though he lost to Usyk twice and Fury may lose to Usyk twice, the people in the U.K. still want to see Anthony Joshua v Tyson Fury."
When asked to pick a winner, Jones Jr placed more pressure on Joshua to prevail, adding: "He has to win that fight.
"And the only way I think he'll lose it is if he gets knocked out, which I don't think will happen.
"So for the sport of boxing and for the love of his fans, he has to win that fight. Because people still want to see who's better out of him and Tyson Fury."
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