Chelsea transfer chief Granovskaia to leave as key management changes continue under new ownership

Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia is set to follow a host of other board members out of the club in the coming weeks, leaving questions about how the Blues do their transfer business under a new ownership group led by Todd Boehly. 

Granovskaia has been the single most important figure in conducting transfers in west London and the upheaval could cause issues when signing players. She could exit as soon as Tuesday, GOAL understands.

It follows, as first revealed by GOAL, the exits of CEO Guy Laurence and the sanctioned Roman Abramovich advisor Eugene Tenenbaum. 

Boehly is widely expected to join Chelsea's board as the chairman with further changes to come.

He has been overseeing transfer activity in the early part of the market but is relying on the expertise of others within the football operation.

Former club chairman Bruce Buck will remain as a senior advisor to the club having impressed the Boehly-Clearlake ownership group. 

The Blues have the likes of head of football operations David Barnard and technical and performance advisor Petr Cech able to step in on the transfer front, too. 

The new board has not been announced but the key stakeholders in the new ownership consortium will have places on the panel. This involves the private equity firm Clearlake Capital and billionaires Hansjorg Wyss and Mark Walter. 

There are expected to be further announcements on non-executive board roles for Conservative Party Member of the House of Lords Danny Finkelstein and PR executive Barbara Charone. 

The new ownership group have ambitious plans for the west Londoners but many inside the men's football operation were concerned that the late completion of the takeover may hold the Blues back in this transfer window.