Chelsea face new seven-figure transfer bill as Brighton spend rockets to £225m

Chelsea have been told to cough up an extra £7. 65m to Brighton for two young players, according to reports. A tribunal has ruled that the Blues must pay a basic fee of £1m, which could rise to £4. 25m, for 16 year old striker Shumaira Mheuka, who joined Chelsea in July 2022.

Brighton will also receive up to £3. 15m for promising left-back Zak Sturge, plus an additional £250,000 if the 19 year old plays for England. Sturge, a Londoner, was snapped up from Brighton by Chelsea last year and spent the first half of the season on loan at Peterborough.

Since Todd Boehly took over Chelsea, they have paid Brighton more than £225m for players and staff — more than double the amount it cost to build the Amex Stadium. Chelsea splashed out a club record £115m to buy midfielder Moises Caicedo in the summer — a deal which has yet to bear fruit so far this season.

The Blues also signed goalkeeper Robert Sanchez in a move costing an initial £25m, reports the Mirror. Before that, Chelsea spent big to bring in left-back Marc Cucurella, another player who has failed to justify his price tag, which could eventually cost the Blues £63m. Some of their spending was offset by selling Billy Gilmour to Brighton, though his £9m fee was small in comparison.

Chelsea have boosted their backroom team with the addition of sporting director Paul Winstanley and Sam Jewell, who will soon take up a senior recruitment role at Stamford Bridge after his period of gardening leave is completed.

The club also spent a hefty £21. 5m to bring in Graham Potter from Brighton, along with several members of his team, only for them all to be let go just seven months later. Chelsea's spending, which has now surpassed £1billion under Boehly's leadership, has been criticised