Former Chelsea player and manager Gianluca Vialli will aid a global consortium to bid for the club as current owner Roman Abramovich looks to sell as soon as possible.
Vialli is now the head of an investment firm called Tifosy Capital & Advisory that assists football takeovers.
His group, which also includes prominent property developer Nick Candy, will aim to make a bid in the region of £2.5 billion, GOAL can confirm, though it remains to be seen if they can secure that funding.
What has been said?
"I am proud and feel very privileged to support Mr. Candy's bid to buy Chelsea Football Club," Vialli told the Daily Mail.
"I have met Nick Candy on a number of occasions over the last few weeks and I am fully behind his visions and commitment to make Chelsea the most globally recognised and supported club in the world, as well as maintaining the ongoing success on the pitch.
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"We share the same view that if the bid is successful, we will try to be the best possible custodians of the club, knowing that it is imperative that supporter concerns are front and centre of any owner's priorities.
"I find Mr Candy to be an ambitious but realistic and very successful entrepreneur and I have been impressed by his enthusiasm and desire to start a new era for the club that we are both so incredibly fond of.
"I am pleased that an English businessman is leading a consortium that will bring diverse expertise and experience to the table, with the goal to make Chelsea a better club for the sake of the fans."
Who else will bid on Chelsea?
Several suitors have emerged before the March 18 deadline.
Among them are a consortium led by Chicago Cubs owners; Mohamed Alkhereiji, who runs Saudi Media; and Turkish businessman Muhsin Bayrak. MMA star Conor McGregor has been another candidate to throw his hat into the ring.
Candy has been seen as the nominal favourite to have his bid accepted, but he had yet to find an investment company partner before teaming up with Vialli.
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