Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, the owner of the Chelsea Football Club, flew to Turkey on Wednesday aiming to finalize the sale of Chelsea, according to a special report by the Daily Mail news website.
Abramovich is seeking buyers for the Premier League club he owns, with a touted price of around 3 billion pounds.
The report said a private jet owned by Abramovich made a trip to Turkey on Wednesday, potentially to discuss terms with wealthy Turkish businessman Muhsin Bayrak, who has claimed he is locked in talks with the former over a purchase, insisting he is “in the negotiation phase for the signatures.”
The luxury 2019 Gulfstream G650ER craft traveled from Moscow and landed briefly in İstanbul before flying on to the Turkish capital of Ankara, according to the report.
Bayrak, whom the Daily Mail says has a net worth of 8 billion pounds, has vowed to ‘”fly the Turkish flag in London soon,” suggesting Abramovich may have traveled to Turkey to negotiate the details of selling Chelsea to Bayrak.
“We are negotiating the terms of the purchase of Chelsea with Roman Abramovich’s lawyers,” Bayrak told the Yeni Şafak daily.
“We made our offer. Due to the Russia-Ukraine war, they find Turkey safe and want to get most of the money in Turkey. We are planning to sign soon.”