Todd Boehly accused of ‘surfing’ on Chelsea’s history by club legend – as he sends major warning to Xabi Alonso

CLAUDE MAKELELE has accused Todd Boehly of ‘surfing’ on Chelsea’s history. The France and Chelsea legend was a key part of Chelsea’s success in the 2000’s, winning two Premier League titles, an FA Cup and two league cups. Claude Makelele is a legend at Chelsea Credit: Getty Todd Boehly has a distance to go if he wants to be regarded as a legend too But now he thinks Todd Boehly and the Chelsea ownership are ‘surfing’ on the foundations laid by those before him, which sends a “terrible message” to the fans. He thinks Chelsea need to have an established first team for young players to develop into, and that the new ownership are not building that. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! Dream Team is back, free, and there’s £100,000 up for grabs! Makelele said: “Chelsea has always developed players, always produced young talent, but always on one condition: before the kids come through, there has to be something to come through into. “A talented, competitive first team, where youth is blended with great players. That’s Chelsea’s DNA, and that’s what the club needs. “The new owners have their own projects, of course. “But you cannot simply take what we built at Chelsea and surf on it. That sends a terrible message to the fans, to the people who love this club. And we’ve seen the results: out of the Big Four, struggling in Europe, humiliated at times. “It’s frustrating, and it’s not the Chelsea we know.” As it happens, chairman Boehly and investment partner Walter are said to be in talks with majority shareholders Clearlake Capital over a deal to offload their combined holdings in Chelsea – which account for more than a quarter of the business. Most read in Sport BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS And while things have been messy at Stamford Bridge since BlueCo took charge, there seems to finally be some hope in south west London this season, having appointed Xabi Alonso as manager and with no European football to worry about. Despite that optimism, Makelele sent a warning to Alonso over the difficulties of the Premier League compared to the Bundesliga, after his immense success as the boss at Bayer Leverkusen. He added: “This is the Premier League. This is not the Bundesliga, where Bayern dominate everything and three or four teams trail behind. “In the Premier League there are ten genuine teams capable of beating anyone. Look at Aston Villa. These are real teams, and this is the hardest league in the world to play in. “I know, because I lived it. It’s a competition unto itself. I hope he does it, and it would be a joy for us too, to be champions again like on day one.” Makelele was speaking on behalf of ComeOn. Xabi Alonso will take charge of his first Premier League game on Monday against Fulham Credit: AFP Comment now