Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich is reportedly seeking to offload his title-chasing club to wealthy businessmen from the Arab world.
Citing Persian Gulf sources, the Sunday Times reported that Abramovich has dispatched representatives to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to elicit interest in the London club.
"Abramovich's team has been out in the Middle East sounding out what interest there is in buying the club," the paper quoted an unnamed source as saying.
Taking advantage of his fortune, the Russian oligarch has helped transform Chelsea into a side that has won two Premier League titles and reached the Champions League final since buying the club in 2003 for about GBP 60 million (USD 88.5m).
According to the report, Abramovich's agents have so far been unable to find any interest in the Middle East to rid of Chelsea in which the Russian has invested more than GBP 500 million (USD 737m) over five years.
The Blues, under new coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, started out with a bang this season. However, the heavy Premiership schedule caught up with the Londoners as they left the title wide open for league leaders Manchester United and Liverpool.
Chelsea currently has 45 points from 22 played games, chasing the Red Devils who sit atop with 47 points out of 21 games and second-placed Liverpool with 46 points out of 21 games.
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