Chelsea takeover faces second enquiry

ROMAN ABRAMOVICH’S takeover of Chelsea was thrust back into the spotlight yesterday as it emerged that a second probe into the club’s shares had been launched.

City Watchdog, the Financial Services Authority, revealed it was looking into the ownership of Chelsea Village after been tipped off that details of shareholdings before the takeover could have been wrong.

The FSA are looking into “the nature and status of certain shareholdings in Chelsea Village plc in the period preceding the announcement of the bid” by Russian oil tycoon Abramovich amid concerns that the Stock Exchange was “misled”. However, the statement added that the takeover panel understood the enquiries were “unconnected to Chelsea Limited,” the company set up by Abramovich to buy out chairman Ken Bates.