By George Overhill

29th Sep, 2022 | 6:00pm

Chelsea and 'mug' Todd Boehly will be used to leverage Jude Bellingham price - Simon Jordan

Todd Boehly doesn’t know what he’s talking about and Chelsea will be leveraged to hike up the prices of players like Jude Bellingham, according to Simon Jordan.

With the Blues’ American chief shelling out heavily this summer, and showing a particular focus on the next generation of talents, it is little surprise that they are also in the race for the Borussia Dortmund star.

But former Crystal Palace chairman Jordan thinks that a rumour would be spread about whether it was true or not and will happen all the time moving forward because of the free-spending nature of the regime at Stamford Bridge so far.

Speaking on talkSPORT on Thursday morning (29 September), in a clip posted to the station’s Twitter account host Jim White said: “Now it’s reported that Chelsea have joined the race to sign [Bellingham]. Todd Boehly keen to continue pursuing his policy of signing the best young prospects.”

Jordan responded: “There is a feeling in my mind that Chelsea are going to be used by certain sections of the football mafia to suggest that they’re in for everybody.

“Because Todd Boehly’s a mug right? He doesn’t know what he’s talking about, he’s going to write cheques out left, right, and centre.

“So it’s a bit like the Chinese situation. Whenever a football player wasn’t happy with his contract China were being indexed to them. ‘Oh, the Chinese will come along and take him.’

“And I think Chelsea are going to be used to potentially leverage up prices, create interest, and enhance demand for players by saying, ‘Chelsea are in for him.’

“Because everything Boehly does means there’s going to be an extra nought on the end of it in people’s minds.”

Point

Jordan may well be right that agents and clubs will seek to use Chelsea as a useful idiot as they attempt to squeeze extra value out of deals.

Judging by how things went during the transfer window just gone however they probably won’t need to, as the chances are that Boehly will be in for everyone anyway.

When it comes to Bellingham it seems unlikely that Dortmund or the England international’s representatives will need any artificial boosting of the price.

He is good enough at such a young age, 19, to create a major bidding war among the biggest sides in Europe just through his play.

Already all the top Premier League clubs have been linked with him, while Real Madrid are increasingly being mooted as the most likely destination.

Bellingham and his family will no doubt make a sensible decision in terms of his development, just as they did in moving to the Signal Iduna Park in the first place.

It seems likely that for the second summer running a global star will be the one everyone is after from Dortmund, after the pursuit of Erling Haaland ended with the Norwegian moving to Manchester City.

If Chelsea are offering crazy money for the former Birmingham teenager then there will be no shortage of clubs ready to match it in what is sure to be a heated battle.

In other Chelsea news, Armando Broja has been tipped to make a breakthrough under Graham Potter.