Once Roman Abramovich grew tired of throwing money at transfer fees and wages at Chelsea, ironically around the time that Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan took the spending to another level at Manchester City, the club decided to develop a new model for signing and keeping players at Stamford Bridge.
A key principle of the new approach at Chelsea was to capitalise on their location.
Sources involved with the finessing the club's strategy at the time have told ESPN FC that London was to be their unique selling point (USP), with Stamford Bridge's position in an affluent area on the west side of the city adding a platinum edge to their slick presentation to prospective new signings who regarded playing and living in one of the world's great cities as a hugely attractive proposition.