Raine set to confirm shortlist of Chelsea bidders with up to four to make it through to final stages

Raine, the merchant bank advising Chelsea on its protracted sale, are finally preparing to confirm which bids have made the shortlist.

After the deadline passed for bids passed on Friday night, bidders have been left anxiously waiting to discover whether they are among a maximum of four to make to the final stages of the process.

There is an expectancy that Todd Boehly’s consortium will make the shortlist, while the fact members of the Ricketts Family have committed to flying over to England to meet supporters indicates they are confident of making the final cut.

The consortium led by Sir Martin Broughton and Lord Coe, which is set to be heavily financed by current Crystal Palace shareholder Josh Harris and David Blitzer, are considered among the favourites to be shortlisted.

The group led by Nick Candy remain hopeful of bing the final three or four; while Centricus, a consortium fronted by Chelsea season ticket holders, and New York Jets owner Woody Johnson are also hoping to be part of the shortlist.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Ricketts Family moved to defuse growing tensions towards their bid to buy Chelsea insisting they are not racist.

An announcement on who had made the three to four party shortlist is expected

Patriarch of the family Joe Ricketts was forced to apologise for describing Muslims as an ‘enemy’ in leaked emails.

But a statement for the Ricketts Family read: ‘Our family rejects any form of hate in the strongest possible terms. Racism and Islamophobia have no place whatsoever in our society. We have developed deep and abiding partnerships with the Muslim community in Chicago, as well as with all communities of colour.

‘Respect for diversity and inclusion are central to our family’s values. If we prevail in our bid for Chelsea, we commit to the Club and to the fans that we will actively promote these values.’