Man Utd great DEMANDS Chelsea's Saudi transfers are BLOCKED

Carlo Garganese

Updated: 4 Jul 2023 15:50 BST
3 min read

Kalidou Koulibaly, Chelsea, 2022-23 — © ProShots

Manchester United legend Gary Neville has demanded that the Premier League blocks all transfers to Saudi Arabia amidst the storm surrounding Chelsea’s transfer business.

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Chelsea have hit the headlines in recent days as they negotiate to sell a host of surplus players to the Saudi Pro League.

However, it has been noted that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) (which also owns Newcastle United) not only has a significant stake in the private equity firm that owns Chelsea, Clearlake Capital, but also owns four major clubs in the Saudi Pro League; Al Nassr, Al Ittihad, Al Ahli and Al Hilal.

These PIF-owned clubs are among the teams Chelsea are selling players to and there has been an outcry over this, especially as the likes of Kalidou Koulibaly and Hakim Ziyech appear set to be sold at very inflated prices. This, in turn, will allow Chelsea to meet FFP requirements that they have been in danger of falling foul of.

Elsewhere, the Saudi Pro League is investing astronomical funds on top players this year, with Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante already moving, and many others such as Ruben Neves, Koulibaly and Ziyech set to follow.

And Neville says that the Premier League need to immediately ban any sales to Saudi Arabia.

© ProShots - Gary Neville, former Man Utd player

What did Gary Neville say?

"The Premier League should put an instant embargo on transfers to Saudi Arabia to ensure the integrity of the game isn't being damaged," Neville told BBC Sport.

"Checks should be made on the appropriateness of the transactions.

"If it comes through that process, obviously transfers could open up again. But I do believe, at this moment in time, transfers should be halted until you look into the ownership structure at Chelsea and whether there are beneficial transfer dealings that are improper."

The BBC reports that “sources at Chelsea are adamant Saudi Arabia's PIF has ‘zero interest, financial or otherwise’ in the club”, although it is accepted that PIF does have a stake in Chelsea.

It should also be noted that multi-club ownership is permitted by UEFA, but the Premier League has rules to ensure that players are valued correctly in transfer deals.