Chelsea's new owners will have to try and match Roman Abramovich's love for the club and ability to win trophies after taking over, says Shaun Wright-Phillips.
The former England international was one of Abramovich's first marquee signings when he joined in a £21 million transfer from Manchester City before going on to end his career in the United States.
The Blues' next owner could well come from the US, with four American groups reaching the preferred bidder stage. With protests against the Ricketts family's bid happening already, Wright-Phillips offered his view on what is needed from the new owners.
What he said?
"With American owners, we can clearly see from their leagues, like MLS, that they don't like relegation or promotion!" Wright-Phillips told GOAL from William Hill's shop.
"Chelsea like to win things. If they come in to qualify for the Champions League and get hold of the revenue then that's not enough for Chelsea.
Next Match
"Chelsea need trophies and there's no middle ground. That's what it takes to keep people happy.
"For me, they also need to have an owner that loves the club as much as Roman did. No matter what you say about him, he loved the club.
"If you buy a club, love it and buy into it then you will support the club for achieving what it wants to achieve."
What's next for Chelsea?
On the ownership front, they await final offers from the four American-led consortiums on April 11, with a view to having a new owner in place by April 18.
In the meantime, the prospective groups will be travelling to the UK to meet various stakeholders in and around the club.
Meanwhile, Thomas Tuchel's team are attempting to shut out the noise ahead of a Champions League clash with Real Madrid after losing 4-1 at home to Brentford in the Premier League.
Wright-Phillips still sees the Blues as favourites against Carlo Ancelotti's side, saying: "In the Champions League, everyone wants to avoid Man City, Chelsea and Liverpool. They are the most dominant ones in the competition right now.
"Real Madrid have Benzema, who turns them into a different animal and he can do everything. We saw what he did to PSG, it was almost like he woke up that morning and just decided to score three goals.
"It is going to be a fascinating tactical match. We know how Tuchel is and he will want to be solid and keep clean sheets.
William Hill"Chelsea need to be careful about Luka Modric and Toni Kroos finding passes to Vinicius Junior and Benzema who can hurt them."
Shaun Wright-Phillips is backing England at 7/1 with William Hill to win the World Cup #ItsWhoYouPlayWith #18+ #BeGambleAware
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