Chelsea Football Club has issued the following statement in response to a story in The Observer newspaper today (Sunday) saying the club is considering building a new stadium in Battersea.

The statement said:

'This story is total nonsense. Chelsea is not actively considering moving to this site in Battersea.

'Chelsea has been linked with a whole host of high profile sites in London before, including this one.

'We are approached on a regular basis by developers and others with a commercial interest in driving up the price of property.

'The architects HOK have not been commissioned by Chelsea to build a stadium and do not work for the club. Their approach was unsolicited.

'Chelsea's position on stadium development is very clear. We will not be considering moving away from our present stadium until all possibilities of redeveloping Stamford Bridge are exhausted.

'Most people are well aware of the difficulties involved in redeveloping Stamford Bridge.'