According to the Daily Telegraph, Chelsea and sports director Paul Winstanley, Lawrence Stewart and two recruiting directors Joe Shields and Sam Jewell have renewed their contracts for six years to 2031. This is Chelsea's recognition of the work...
According to the Daily Telegraph, Chelsea and sports director Paul Winstanley, Lawrence Stewart and two recruiting directors Joe Shields and Sam Jewell have renewed their contracts for six years to 2031. This is Chelsea's recognition of the work done by the above four people. After being criticized for a period of time, their work has begun to show results.
Like Chelsea players and coaches, the contracts of Winstanley, Stewart, Shields and Jewell also contain a large number of incentive clauses based on success and goal achievement, which is in line with the philosophy of club owners’ reward performance. Not only do these renewals represent trust between the parties, but the time factor of long-term commitment is more important than any potential financial impact. Players and key staff also agreed with Chelsea's philosophy and strategies by signing long-term incentive contracts. After Burley acquired Chelsea, the club has spent about 2 billion pounds since the summer of 2022, of which 800 million to 900 million pounds were recovered through player sales. Winstanley and Stewart began serving as United Sports Directors in January 2023 and worked with Shields to oversee a major change in the team's strategy, while Jewell joined the leadership team a year later, Chelsea's strategy began to work in 2025, with the club successfully advancing to the Champions League and winning the UEFA Champions League and the Club World Cup.
These renewals are not rewards for the results of last season, but recognition of all their work since early 2023 and trust in future plans. The club believes that Chelsea has achieved relatively little at present compared to the long-term goals. Winstanley and Stewart have faced some criticism since joining Chelsea, but the club is impressed by their strategic persistence and focus, and the leadership team has also benefited greatly from the support and trust at all levels of the club.
The most significant success stories of Chelsea's leadership team include signing players such as Palmer and Kessetdo, who are considered one of the best players in their respective positions. In addition, there are also the appointment of Maresca as the head coach of the men's football team and Sonia Bonpast as the head coach of the women's football team, and major adjustments to the youth training system. The club tries to maintain courage and humility while pursuing excellence.
In addition to signing numerous new players, Chelsea's leadership team has proved that they are excellent sellers, earning more than 200 million pounds through player sales this summer alone. The club is optimistic about this, believing that the transfer business revenue and expenditure will be close to balance this summer. Chelsea’s strategy of signing elite young players is based on the so-called “three pillars”: strength, mentality and game experience. The club believes that game experience is more important than age. This not only refers to the players’ time in the first team, but also their performance in major events and national teams.
Future planning is a key element of Chelsea's strategy, with a recent example of signing exciting young player Estewan, who stayed in Palmeiras for a year after signing last summer and did not come to England until after the Club World Cup. Instead of trying to adjust the strategy to cater to the outside world about what is needed to win the league title and the Champions League, Chelsea doubled down on its approach. Last season, Chelsea advanced to the Champions League with the youngest lineup in the Premier League, and the new season's lineup will be even younger.
