"We don't care about Clearlake, they don't care about us."

Amid growing anger from Chelsea's fans towards the club's BlueCo ownership, that chant has become the anthem of this campaign.

Monday's dismal 3-1 defeat by a second-string Nottingham Forest in the Premier League means the Blues can no longer finish fifth - and are highly unlikely to meet their minimum pre‑season aim of qualifying for the Champions League.

It appears the moment of reckoning has arrived for BlueCo, who are now the target of an increasingly irate fanbase.

While the Clearlake chant only targets one arm of the ownership, it is part of a wider disconnect between supporters and the club, amid the search for a sixth permanent manager in four years after Liam Rosenior was sacked last month.

There is also a perceived lack of effort from players and dissatisfaction with ticketing policies.

Chelsea's most recent accounts showed a £262m Premier League-record pre-tax loss and Uefa continues to monitor the club under a settlement agreement from last summer that will regulate spending on players.

It is against that backdrop that BlueCo - the holding company owned by Todd Boehly and his allies, along with majority investor Clearlake - are on trial with supporters.

At the thick end is Not A Project CFC, a fringe but growing fan movement who are calling for major change - and have announced two further protests.

One will take place on Wembley Way before the FA Cup final against Manchester City, and the other urges fans to turn their backs in the 22nd minute (representing the year 2022 when BlueCo bought Chelsea from sanctioned Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich) of their final home game against Tottenham.

It is a movement figures inside Chelsea have tried to quell, including director Danny Finkelstein, after a conversation with supporters was leaked in which he said it was "obvious" the Blues were building one of the best teams in the world.

While the picture may seem bleak for Chelsea, who are ninth in the league with just three matches left, with a cup final to come is the situation still salvageable for BlueCo?

Fixing the disconnect

Tottenham boss Roberto de Zerbi (centre) talking to Chelsea recruiters Paul Winstanley (left) and Sam Jewell at Stamford Bridge

Tottenham boss Roberto de Zerbi (centre) talking to Chelsea recruiters Paul Winstanley (left) and Sam Jewell at Stamford Bridge

Hosting Tottenham head coach Roberto de Zerbi in Chelsea's directors' box on Monday, ostensibly to scout his future opponents, went down poorly with sections of the fanbase.

De Zerbi has a long‑standing relationship with Paul Winstanley and Sam Jewell from their time at Brighton, but Chelsea fans want to see their London rivals relegated - particularly with the prospect of inflicting damage themselves in a league match at Stamford Bridge in a fortnight.

It was just one of the missteps that have compounded poor results, leaving fans feeling misunderstood and ignored.

Since the Abramovich era, almost every player, senior executive and most behind-the-scenes football staff in the men's team have been replaced.

Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea's second head coach under BlueCo, told The Overlap podcast he left the club because they didn't match his "vision". He highlighted how the Blues prefer to look at data rather than human connection and "emotion".

His replacement Enzo Maresca initially bought into that vision, but did not fully win over match-going supporters, despite claiming the Conference League and Club World Cup, and qualifying for the Champions League with a young squad in his only full season.

He ultimately departed after a dispute encompassing transfers, his salary and what was perceived as medical department meddling in his use of players.

Chelsea's next permanent boss Liam Rosenior placed importance on culture and building a relationship with supporters, but lost the dressing room before his vision could be fully implemented.

The coaching instability has fed into public concerns from current players Enzo Fernandez and Marc Cucurella, amid increased doubts over their futures.

Fernandez's agent Javier Pastore says he believes his client is underpaid, but the Argentine signed a nine-year contract until 2032 when he joined - making it difficult to renegotiate his deal, especially with Chelsea only wanting to discuss improved terms in the summer.

"A nine-year contract - it's absolutely crazy, you don't want to sign a contract like that," former England striker Wayne Rooney told BBC Sport.

"Maybe financially if you want security, but you don't want to tie yourself in for that long. It's absolute madness."

Chelsea have incentive-based contracts that include bonuses for Champions League qualification and believe they are broadly in line with the market.

This is reflected in the club having the third-highest wage bill in their latest accounts for the 2024-25 season. However, they have been outbid by rivals on occasion, including in the deal that saw Marc Guehi join Manchester City in January.

Yet, the pace of player trading has left some fans feeling cold. In an excerpt from his column in the CFCUK fanzine, founding editor Dave Johnstone said: "Any rapport between the players and the supporters... to my mind at least, is at an all-time low.

"Ask any supporter of a certain age and they will tell you that, from the late 1960s, every player picked for the Chelsea team got their name chanted during the warm-up and they, in turn, responded with an acknowledgement.

"These days though, and much to their detriment, the current crop of players appear wholly detached from the people in the stands."

Will Chelsea change?

"As the club works to bring stability to the head coach position, we will undertake a process of self‑reflection to make the right long‑term appointment," said the end of Chelsea's statement after Rosenior's sacking in April.

It points to a more humble tone from when Boehly once proposed a much-ridiculed all-star north‑versus‑south match in the first season of their ownership.

A week earlier, influential co-owner Behdad Eghbali admitted there was a need to "tweak the plan if it's not working".

The Clearlake co‑founder also said sacking Thomas Tuchel in 2022 "didn't work out", adding signing leaders and players with Premier League experience would be key to taking the club to the next level.

Eghbali is the most powerful figure at Chelsea and very hands-on, with Clearlake majority owning the club, rather than chairman Boehly or his billionaire associates.

There has been a settling of relations between Clearlake and Boehly after a rift emerged in 2024 but it remains unclear whether it will hold longer term.

Although Chelsea insist the club is run by its five‑strong sporting director team, Eghbali is involved in the negotiations of key transfers, particularly the signings of Fernandez and Mykhailo Mudryk in 2023, and has also been present in club‑to‑club talks on major sales, including the departure of Romelu Lukaku.

Echoing Eghbali's public statement last month, Chelsea have been consistent in saying their aim is to win trophies and, at a minimum, qualify for the Champions League.

It is clear from recent balance sheets that qualifying for Europe's elite competition helps offset the financial disadvantages of a sub‑40,000‑capacity stadium and weaker commercial revenue than their so‑called 'big‑six' rivals.

However, Chelsea aim to improve their fortunes and have gone on record to say they are a committed ownership. In addition, they would not forfeit any opportunity to play in the Europa League or Conference League, despite Uefa's stricter financial regulations compared with the Premier League.

Chelsea are now embarking on a detailed process to appoint their sixth permanent manager, with Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola, Fulham's Marco Silva and former Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso understood to be in contention.

There have been successes in the structure but failing to appoint the right manager has made it hard to win regularly, a core tenet of Chelsea's identity, but also build a lasting connection with supporters and repair fractured relations. (BBC)

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