Coach trusts British govt to find Chelsea solution

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel said he trusted the British government to find a solution for the football club’s operations to return to normal by the end of the season after sanctions imposed on their Russian owner Roman Abramovich left them in limbo.

Anyone interested in buying Chelsea Football Club can make a proposal to the government, Britain said on Friday, after ministers sanctioned Abramovich and halted his planned sale of the Premier League outfit on Thursday.

Abramovich had been under scrutiny since the beginning of Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine. Chelsea are now operating under a special government licence which allows the club to continue playing games and pay their squad and staff but which means the European champions cannot transfer players in or out as things stand. New ticket sales are not permitted and the club’s merchandise store has been forced to close.

“There are negotiations and talks going on about the licence,” Tuchel told reporters ahead of Sunday’s Premier League game at home to Newcastle United.

“I trust in everybody who is in charge, I trust people who are in charge in the government to find a solution that keeps us going through the season and gives us the possibility to be in charge of our actions in the summer. We were all surprised by the news and it is too early to have an outlook on the summer.”

The last round of Premier League fixtures is on May 22, with the transfer window set to re-open in June.

With Chelsea’s main shirt sponsor, mobile network Three, asking the club to remove its logo and suspending its relationship, Tuchel said the players could “wear a message for peace” on the team shirts instead.

“It can never be the wrong message,” he said. “Maybe the worry is to find enough shirts to play in with the sanctions. But as long as we have enough shirts and the bus is full of fuel, we will arrive and be competitive.”

The sanctions throw a spanner in the works of the club’s attempts to renew the contracts of defenders Antonio Rudiger, Cesar Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen, however. All three players are out of contract at the end of the season.

Chelsea, who have won their last four league games, are third in the standings while Newcastle are 14th.

Britain’s technology minister, Chris Philip, told Sky News that while the licence conditions as currently written prohibit a sale, potential buyers can “approach the government and ask for the conditions to be varied in a way that allows that sale to take place.”

British property developer Nick Candy remains interested in making a bid, a spokesperson said in a statement, and was examining the details of Thursday’s sanctions announcement.

Chelsea said on Thursday they would seek changes to the licence to allow the club to operate as normally as possible. The government has said that while Abramovich cannot benefit financially from the club, some changes might be possible.

“We’re in constant contact with the club… It’s now up to the club to apply for any amended licence,” Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman said. (Reuters)