Rio Ferdinand has taken aim at Chelsea's sensational £1billion transfer spree under Todd Boehly, declaring that the spending has left the club a 'madhouse'.

The ownership, spearheaded by the American billionaire and Clearlake Capital, has invested an eye-watering total of £1.2bn on almost 40 incomings at Stamford Bridge since taking control from Roman Abramovich in May 2022.

Enzo Maresca's first-team squad is now made up of 43 players, the bulk of whom arrived in the past couple of seasons, and the Blues are expected to spend yet more money as they look to strengthen their ranks ahead of the new season.

Midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo both joined in deals worth over £100m while forward Mykhailo Mudryk cost the hierarchy £88m. 

More recently, new signing Pedro Neto set Boehly back £54m.

Todd Boehly has splashed out around £1.3billion on Chelsea signings since his takeover

Ferdinand, however, has questioned the strategy and believes the speculation over further arrivals will affect players already in the changing room. 

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Speaking during an #AskRio video on X, he said: 'I'd love to have a crystal ball. I've got to be honest, I think it's a madhouse over there at the moment. 

'Imagine being a player in that changing room now and sitting there. I'd be every day getting in as early as I can or getting on my phone as soon as I wake up... who have we signed today? It's madness. Every other day they're signing a new player. 

'I think under this new ownership it's 36 players that have come in and they still want another two. Over a billion pounds spent. I want to see what's going to happen in the next 18 months, two years. I want to fast forward and get to that point.

'I don't know where this is going. If they know where this is going, they're geniuses.'

Chelsea are set to be the Premier League's biggest spenders again this summer. 

Indeed, for the third straight window since the takeover, the Blues have outstripped their rivals after signing 12 players to date for a grand total of almost £200m. 

But Boehly earlier this year looked to defend the £1bn splurge.

'We are not spending the money, we are investing the money,' he said. 'When we are spending, we are investing and those players continue to hold their value. 

'I argue the investments made at Chelsea have held their value.'