Having wrapped up the Premier League title, Chelsea will be in buoyant mood as they prepare to face Arsenal in the FA Cup final at Wembley on Saturday. Winning the double would only serve to further swell the Stamford Bridge coffers, which despite a lack of European football this season are currently awash with TV prize money and sponsors' cash.
The £150 million-plus for winning the league supplemented by matchday revenues of almost £70m and key sponsorship deals -- which, each year include £40m from Yokohama Rubber, £10m from Carabao and £60m forthcoming from Nike -- make for a healthy war chest should Blues boss Antonio Conte decide to reinforce his squad with a marquee signing or two in the summer.
Chelsea's finances are in such rude health that the London club's munificent owner Roman Abramovich should be able to keep his money in his wallet, ready to spend on the £500m redevelopment of Stamford Bridge, which has been given the green light by the authorities and looks set to begin in earnest within the next couple of years.
Since he bought Chelsea in June 2003, Abramovich has never been shy at the transfer table, backing a succession of managers in a bid to secure glory -- and the return on investment has been spectacular. Five Premier League trophies, four FA Cups (and perhaps soon to be five), three League Cups, one Champions League and one Europa League are evidence enough that the Russian's money has secured a dazzling array of silverware, but it's important to note however that in recent campaigns the Blues' net spend on transfers has been negligible when compared with their title rivals.
This season, Chelsea's net transfer dealings cost £20.4m, which contrasts markedly with Arsenal (£87.25m), Manchester United (£117.17m) and Manchester City (£151m). Success there has not mirrored net cash spent. Arsenal failed to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in 20 years; Man United have won the League Cup but floundered in the title race and are having to take a scenic route to Europe's elite club competition, which may yet come to nothing. And Man City have wound up without a trophy, although they will play in the Champions League next season. Similarly, Tottenham Hotspur, whose net spend amounted to £24.82m, have an empty trophy cabinet to stare at over the summer months.
The question now is what will Conte do? Of course Chelsea will be linked with a bevy of world-class stars in the coming months, but the Italian proved himself to be a shrewd operator when it came to fettling the Blues squad. A year ago nobody could have foreseen the transfers of Marcos Alonso and David Luiz, the resurrection of Victor Moses' career or the progress that academy graduates Nathan Ake and Nathaniel Chalobah have made. It may well transpire that next season Conte's preferred starting XI and bench won't be too different from that which contests Saturday's FA Cup final.
Striker Diego Costa remains the only key Chelsea player to be continually linked with a move away from the Bridge; rumours of his exit have dragged on for so long it would be wise to suppose that Conte has long since decided on who will replace the 28-year-old should he leave. Alvaro Morata of Real Madrid and Everton's Romelu Lukaku have been touted as the prime candidates to fill Costa's boots for more than a year. Neither will come cheap, but that will be of little consequence to Chelsea, who can balance their books quite easily with the revenue from Costa's departure.
Interestingly enough, the recent surge in form of striker Michy Batshuayi will have given Conte food for thought in respect to his attacking plans. Chelsea's second most expensive signing ever at £33.2m, under-utilised for much of the past campaign, has blossomed into something of a goal machine of late, finding the net four times over the space of the Blues' past three games.
Clearly the 23-year-old is a force to be reckoned with given the opportunity. Should the Belgium international seize the chance to play, likely to be minutes off the bench, against Arsenal in the cup final and repay Conte's new-found faith with more goals, then preseason could represent a gilt-edged opportunity for Batshuayi to stake a claim to become Chelsea's primary striker.
Such is Conte's standing with both the Chelsea hierarchy and the club's fans that whatever he chooses to do in the transfer market -- be it something quirky, next to nothing or landing a big fish -- he will retain their support. Irrespective of what happens, with a healthy bank balance as security, the Blues look primed for more success.