Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital issued stern Chelsea warning ahead of Man Utd protest

Former Chelsea midfielder Gus Poyet has called on the club's supporters to show patience when it comes to the ownership group leading the Blues to where they want to be

Gus Poyet believes both patience and stability are required at his former club Chelsea in order for the west London club to become a proper force once again.

The Blues were taken over in May 2022 by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital's consortium, with Roman Abramovich forced to sell the club. The billionaire was sanctioned by the UK government following Russia's invasion of Ukraine because of his close ties with Vladimir Putin.

Since BlueCo, the consortium who owns Chelsea now, bought the Blues, they have won two major trophies - the Conference League and the Club World Cup, both being lifted last season with Enzo Maresca the head coach at the time. However, midway through this season, Maresca departed Stamford Bridge and there has been somewhat of a reset, with Liam Rosenior succeeding the Italian.

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Some supporters were unhappy with the managerial change after a successful season for Maresca, leading to chants against the ownership during Chelsea's defeat to Fulham in January. That was the first match of the post-Maresca era and songs against Clearlake have continued ever since.

There was a protest a couple of hours before Chelsea's win against Brentford in January, and there is another one planned before their home match with Manchester United on April 18. Poyet, who used to play for the Blues, has called on a bit more patience from fans but has also urged the club to provide some more stability.

Speaking exclusively to football.london, Poyet said: "Abramovich put the club, and we will see in the near future if that was rightly or wrongly because of the situation, and the fans got used to it. When they win, they want to keep winning.

"I don't see anyone during the times of Alex Ferguson in Manchester saying, 'this year, we're going to lose'. They keep waiting and they keep believing they are going to win - and Chelsea are the same.

"Less than a year ago, they won a European competition and the Club World Cup. Not even Man City can win every single tournament, so why Chelsea? Sometimes we are not patient enough to wait.

"Young, the team was young when Frank Lampard was [managing] the team. They're not young anymore. Cucurella is not youth, he's not young, Caicedo is not young, Robert Sanchez is not young, Enzo Fernandez is not young, Cole Palmer is not young anymore. If you want to say those players are young, forget it. Put them on the bench for five years so then they can play and they are going to be old. I think the team is not young anymore.

"I don't see Chelsea buying young players to sell. £100million for Fernandez, how much are you going to sell him for? It's difficult. £100m for Caicedo, how much are you going to ask for? Difficult, eh? £50m for Cucurella, how much are you going to ask for?

"That is something again that was in the press four years ago. People keep talking about the same but it's rubbish - it's not young anymore. If you think they need different types of players, then we can discuss it, different characters, we can discuss it, different qualities, maybe.

"But I think this way of working, bringing young players in to sell, it's rubbish because when they won the Club World Cup, they were not young, when they won the Conference League, they were not young. That's normal.

"When you lose four games in a row, people think the owners are just buying young players. I think it's a little bit unfair. Abramovich was clear; you win the league or you're out. Mourinho, Conte, Ancelotti, Scolari, anyone. I think Chelsea needs stability now. You get stability from games and results - that's the main part."