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Clearlake Capital is now the sole power at Stamford Bridge after buying out Todd Boehly and Mark Walter's minority stakes in Chelsea. Boehly had been the public face of the club since the Roman Abramovich era ended, overseeing a spending spree that reshaped the squad. Now Clearlake takes the wheel entirely, and the question is what that means for the direction of the club going forward.
Meanwhile across London, Manchester United are in genuine crisis. Trailing Brighton at home, they somehow found a way to blow a two-nil lead at Old Trafford and lose — the first time that's happened in fifty years. United were ahead at the break and still found a way to collapse. This wasn't just a bad result, it was historically bad, and the pressure on the manager is mounting by the hour.
And in the world of football politics, the tension between Lionel Messi and MLS Commissioner Don Garber is becoming impossible to ignore. After Inter Miami's Campeones Cup victory, cameras caught Messi visibly frustrated, repeatedly pointing his finger at Garber during what looked like a very uncomfortable exchange. Garber had apparently acknowledged months earlier that Messi wasn't fond of him. That relationship is clearly not improving.
That's your play-by-play. Sports Desk, back to the booth.
