Tottenham could capitalise on Chelsea’s financial struggles to secure favourable deals this summer.
Daniel Levy has been one of the most vocal supporters of financial rules being enforced and has always been careful to keep Tottenham’s books balanced, often at the expense of his reputation.
The same can not be said of Chelsea, who have outspent every Premier League club by some margin since Todd Boehly took over from Roman Abramovich in May 2022, leaving the Blues with various question marks over their finances.
The West Londoners have attempted to offset their substantial spending by selling multiple academy graduates for pure profit, but this has not been deemed sufficient to avoid their latest setback.
Chelsea to pay £17.2million to UEFA for non-compliance
While the Premier League have their own regulations (PSR), teams competing in Europe must also comply with UEFA’s guidelines.
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As reported by Miguel Delaney on X (4 July), Chelsea have been found not to have complied with UEFA’s football earnings and squad cost rules, and will be required to pay a settlement of £17.2million.
A handful of other clubs, including Aston Villa, were also penalised, but Chelsea’s settlement is the most costly.
This will not only be a blow to Boehly’s club but will also require them to be extra cautious this summer to avoid future punishment as they prepare to compete in the Champions League alongside Tottenham.
This has opened the door for Spurs to exploit their bitter rivals and could move Josh Acheampong one step closer to joining the Lilywhites this summer.
As reported by The Independent (26 June), Tottenham have tracked Acheampong for a while and are interested in bringing the 19-year-old to North London.
They are facing competition from Borussia Dortmund and Newcastle following the teenager’s breakthrough at Stamford Bridge last season, but are now in a perfect position to move in for the defender following Chelsea’s added worries.
Tottenham don’t need another young centre-back
Acheampong has proven to be an excellent talent with a calm demeanour, both on and off the ball, in the few games he has played for Chelsea.
He has all the attributes to develop into a top centre-back, but it would still be far from a guarantee, and Spurs have plenty of similar options already at the club.
Alfie Dorrington, Ashley Phillips, and Luka Vušković will all return from their respective loans, and each will be vying for a spot in the first-team squad.
Ahead of them are players like Radu Drăgușin and Micky van de Ven, who are already established senior players but are both in their early twenties and are expected to continue developing.
With Cristian Romero, Kevin Danso, and Ben Davies rounding out the options at centre-back, Tottenham do not need further reinforcements in that position, especially not young, unproven players.