Method or madness?
Many have debated until the metaphorical cows come home about the positives and drawbacks of Clearlake’s transfer strategy at Chelsea, which revolves around handing out eye-poppingly long contracts to young prospects.
On the one hand, that ensures you can lock in the stars of tomorrow for a lengthy period, ensuring that if they have to be sold then their long contracts prevent opposition clubs from securing a cut-price deal – unless Todd Boehly wants rid of the player quickly, that is.
The downside, evidently, is that if a player doesn’t thrive at Stamford Bridge, it becomes a lot harder to move them on – more on that later.
Whether you’re pro or anti this strategy, there’s no doubt that it could come up trumps in the forward movements of Cole Palmer, who is said to be unsettled at Chelsea.
The team he supported as a boy, Manchester United, are said to be lining up a bid, but Palmer’s lengthy Blues contract could mean that the Red Devils have to break transfer records in order to get their hands on the 23-year-old.
Palmer to Manchester United?
Even neutrals would agree that Palmer would be taking a backward step in leaving Chelsea for United.
But the heart wants what it wants, and Palmer – who grew up in Wythenshawe, still has family there and supported the Red Devils as a boy – is rumoured to be keen on the switch.
Reports suggest that the playmaker is ‘unsettled’ at the club and does not enjoy living in London, which would open the door to a return north.
However, Palmer would not welcome a switch back to Manchester City – where he came through the youth ranks, but would instead be open to a club he used to watch from the Old Trafford stand as a youngster.
When quizzed about his footballing hero growing up, the 23-year-old didn’t miss a beat.
“Wayne Rooney. I was a United fan when I was younger, and I used to watch him all the time,” he replied.
“When I do go back to the stadium [Old Trafford], it’s good because I used to go and watch matches there.”
So that’s all well and good. But there’s a catch…
Chelsea signed Palmer for £42.5million in September 2023. Since then, he’s played a key role in guiding Chelsea to the FIFA Club World Cup title and in helping England to the EURO 2024 final, while notching 41 goals in 75 Premier League starts for the Blues and assisting 19 more.
In short, his stock has risen…
And then there’s the small matter of his contract. In August 2024, Palmer signed an extension to his existing deal that will keep him at Chelsea until 2033.
The current British transfer record is the £125 million Liverpool spent on Alexander Isak in the summer of 2025, while Declan Rice and Jack Grealish are said to jointly hold the record as the most valuable English players at £100 million apiece.
Palmer to Manchester United could break both of those records… and Clearlake’s contract strategy would be partly to thank.
Long Term Security
In a post for the Twenty First Group, who provide sports data analysis, Aurel Nazmiu highlighted the extent of Clearlake’s long-term contract strategy.
He found that a whopping 73% of Chelsea’s overall squad value is tied into contracts that will keep those players at Stamford Bridge until 2030 at the earliest.
This is considerably higher than the rest of the Premier League:
- #1 – Chelsea (73%)
- #2 – West Ham (55%)
- #3 – Sunderland (53%)
- #4 – Brentford (52%)
- #4 – Tottenham (52%)
To reiterate, the percentage figure is the ratio of total squad value of players locked into contracts until 2030+.
So the takeaway point is that Chelsea’s most valuable assets cannot leave Stamford Bridge for at least four years – unless, that is, a suitable transfer fee is negotiated.
It’s an interesting strategy from Clearlake, and one that can be viewed through the prism of the relative lack of long-term contracts being handed out by the other Premier League big boys, such as Arsenal (30%) and Liverpool (49%).
Is this a strategy that will come up trumps in the long run? Blues fans will be hoping so.
Of course, it does mean that players that don’t come up to standard have to be sold at a snip of a price to get their wages off the bill. The likes of Joao Felix, Christopher Nkunku and Kalidou Koulibaly have all been signed by Clearlake and sold by Clearlake for a considerable loss.
And it seems likely that not a penny will be recouped on Raheem Sterling’s £49 million fee, while Nicolas Jackson and Axel Disasi may also be sold at a significant loss.
But keeping the likes of Palmer, Moises Caicedo, Estevao and Enzo Fernandez at the club on long-term deals? That’s a strategy that could yet prove priceless…