Chelsea sale: Paul Merson makes ‘worrying’ takeover admission as new owners given first task

David Moyes Heaps Praise On Arsenal Following His Side's 2-1 Defeat

Arsenal Target Aaron Hickey In Profile

Chelsea Transfer Rumours

Mikel Arteta shares his support for Nuno Tavares following his performance against Manchester United

Arsenal Fans Tell Stan Kroenke To 'Get Out Of Our Club'

Bruno Lage Opens Door For Arsenal To Sign Ruben Neves This Summer

Former Arsenal player and pundit Paul Merson has claimed that the time the Chelsea takeover is taking is “worrying” and fears the club will be left behind by its Premier League rivals. It comes amid a complicated saga surrounding the ownership of the Blues.

It started in March, when owner Roman Abramovich announced his intentions to sell, just before he was sanctioned by the UK Government in wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This left the short-term and long-term future of the club uncertain, with the government giving them a sporting licence to continue to operate.

Raine Bank was left in charge of the process, eventually picking out a consortium led by Todd Boehly as the preferred bidder. While there are fears that Abramovich could renege his promise to wipe off the £1.6billion loan he gave the club, Boehly now has a period of exclusivity to proceed with the deal.

What Todd Boehly has done amid huge £500m Roman Abramovich request

However, with the sporting licence expiring at the end of the month, time is ticking on getting a takeover sorted. And with that in mind, former Arsenal man Merson has claimed he is worried for Chelsea’s future.

Speaking in his Sky Sports column, he said: “They've [Chelsea] got to sell the club before they do anything else. Until they sell the club, they can't bring anyone in. If you went and bought a house for £300,000 tomorrow it