Chelsea and Aston Villa are back under UEFA scrutiny following suspicious swap deal valuations involving Ian Maatsen and Omari Kellyman. With both clubs fined for FFP breaches, European football’s governing body is clamping down on financial tricks.
Chelsea’s financial dealings are under the microscope once again after UEFA issued a fresh warning regarding inflated player swap valuations, following the club’s £27 million ($36m) fine for previous Financial Fair Play (FFP) breaches.
According to The Times, European football’s governing body is intensifying its focus on player trading strategies, particularly involving homegrown talent, that appear designed to manipulate Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR). Both Chelsea and Aston Villa, already fined by UEFA this year—Villa were hit with a £9.5m penalty—are now operating under settlement agreements, and face harsher sanctions, including potential bans from UEFA competitions, if they commit further infractions.
The Kellyman–Maatsen Swap Raises Eyebrows
The spotlight has fallen on a swap deal from last summer between the two clubs that many saw as artificially inflated. Omari Kellyman moved from Villa to Chelsea for £19m, while Ian Maatsen headed the other way for £37.5m—a combined total of £56.5m.
Critics quickly pointed out that the deal could have been structured far more simply. Villa could have just paid £18.5m in cash for Maatsen, and sent Kellyman to Stamford Bridge as a minor component of the package. Instead, the deal allowed both clubs to record the incoming fee from a homegrown player—which counts as pure profit on the balance sheet—helping with PSR compliance.
UEFA reportedly viewed this deal with suspicion, and according to the Times, intervened to knock back the valuation of at least one part of the transaction. That in itself is a rare move and a clear indication that UEFA is clamping down on such creative accounting tactics.
UEFA vs Premier League Standards
While both clubs have escaped punishment from the Premier League—whose PSR guidelines are more lenient—UEFA’s version of financial regulation is far stricter, particularly in relation to allowable losses. That discrepancy is what led to Chelsea and Villa being punished by UEFA while flying under the radar domestically.
The concern from UEFA is that a pattern is forming. Chelsea, for example, have sold two hotels in recent months to bolster their financial standing, while Aston Villa controversially struck a deal to sell a stake in their women’s team to meet PSR thresholds. These moves, while technically legal, reflect the growing pressure on clubs to find loopholes.
Chelsea Must Proceed With Caution
Chelsea’s strong finish under new boss Enzo Maresca, which included winning the FIFA Club World Cup, is in danger of being overshadowed by ongoing off-pitch controversies. The club has invested heavily in recent windows and appears determined to comply with financial regulations—but UEFA’s latest stance suggests their margin for error is now razor-thin.
If the Blues want to maintain their upward trajectory and avoid another round of sanctions or even exclusion from Europe, they will need to exercise far greater care in how deals are structured—especially as UEFA sharpens its focus on swap deals as a tool for financial manipulation.
For Chelsea and Villa, the message is clear: there won’t be another warning.
