EXCL: Chelsea confident of new £55-60m sponsorship deal, Preference to remain at Stamford Bridge with new Architect brought in, Pochettino's Sterling challenge, Palmer's decision to leave City, more..
The Ben Jacobs Chelsea FC Column!
Chelsea head into the international break on a high after three straight wins in all competitions. The 4-1 victory at Burnley was an important three points ahead of a tough run of fixtures.
Chelsea were clinical in the second half at Turf Moor. They found an extra gear, something they failed to do for most of last season. It’s actually the first time in 20 Premier League games that Chelsea have gone behind and come back to win.
Cole Palmer got his first Chelsea and Premier League goal, and the fact he was given the penalty shows how highly he is trusted. Palmer has been tremendous since joining and is probably the first Chelsea signing since Enzo Fernandez to slot straight in. Mykhailo Mudryk and even Moises Caicedo have needed more time. Perhaps I am being harsh on the also excellent Robert Sanchez and even Benoit Badiashile, but I do think Palmer's potential is just instantly clear for all to see.
Some Chelsea fans were a bit underwhelmed by Palmer’s arrival. This is maybe because if Manchester City agreed to sell, some (wrongly in my view) argue that somehow means Palmer is not quite up to elite-standards. Yet what some people don’t realise is it was Palmer who wanted to leave. Manchester City had to respect his wishes for more minutes and by departing the champions he’s probably even more intent to prove a point. Manchester City’s loss definitely looks like being Chelsea's gain.
And the same can be said of Raheem Sterling, who is currently back to his best. He was sensational against Burnley and has probably been Chelsea’s biggest threat this season. Sterling knows strong Chelsea form is the only thing that will force him back into the England reckoning for Euro 2024. Mauricio Pochettino has challenged him to get back in the squad and Sterling looks re-energised having changed his diet over the summer and kind of fallen back in love with football as well.
It was also encouraging to see Nicolas Jackson come off the bench and score against Burnley having been benched in favour of Armando Broja. Now Broja is fit there is genuine competition and still plenty of time to see if one or both shine before deciding whether to add another striker in January.
Off the field, there’s a lot of change and progress going on at the club. Jason Gannon (COO), Adriel Lares (CFO) and Casper Stylsvig (CRO) have all come in as part of the senior leadership team. New CEO Chris Jurasek has had a significant say in each appointment.
Jurasek, and new chief marketing officer Claire Cronin, are also playing a crucial role in finding a new long-term front-of-shirt sponsor. Believe it or not, clubs like to lock these kinds of deals in a season in advance, so just because Infinite Athlete have recently come in doesn’t mean anyone will be resting on their laurels.
The Infinite Athlete deal is worth over £40m and although the front-of-shirt is only for 2023/24, the partnership is long-term. You can learn more about it via my exclusive interview with Infinite Athlete co-founder Charlie Ebersol. Clearly the plan is to use IA’s technology to provide a better and more innovative fan experience and we might also see a shirt sleeve sponsorship from 2024/25.
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