Following Russia’s invasion of the sovereign country Ukraine, the UK government imposed sanctions on several Russian oligarchs on Thursday morning.
This is particularly significant for Chelsea football club which is owned by Roman Abramovich, who has not given verbal support to Russian president Putin’s actions.
However, he has not condemned the invasion either. Abramovich made much of his vast fortune thanks to being a close associate of the Russian president.
Sanctions place important restrictions on the running of Chelsea FC. I reported last week what it would mean in terms of Chelsea’s ability to buy new players in the summer. However, the tough sanctions mean that Chelsea will find it very difficult to operate their business and compete in the Premier League.
The club will not able to do any business such as selling merchandise, selling tickets for matches, buying or selling players. But they will be able to pay staff and for services already received, including food and drink in their various bars and restaurants.
It also puts on hold any improvement to Stamford Bridge, which has been ordered by the footballing authorities.
One immediate problem for Chelsea is the limit of £500k expenses for each match played and only £20k for away game travel including Champions League matches. Only season ticket holders will be able to attend matches unless Chelsea allows fans into the ground for free.
All of Roman Abramovich’s assets have been frozen in the UK and this includes his business interests and his London properties valued at over £200million.
Last night Abramovich’s 140 metre super yacht ‘My Solaris’ hurriedly left the port at Barcelona to avoid being confiscated and was heading out into the Mediterranean and on to a neutral country where it will be safe.
United lack belief in Rangnick and passion for the fight
On Tuesday morning, Manchester United players were shown videos of Crystal Palace winger and match-winner Wilfried Zaha running past players against in-form Wolves and then running back at top speed to help his defence.
Philippe Coutinho led Aston Villa’s demolition of in-form Southampton with some inspirational play upfront and then seconds later was dashing back to help out at the back.
Now compare that with United when they lost possession and players such as Marcus Rashford, Fred and Bruno Fernandes just trotted around, making no effort to retrieve the ball and stood watching as Harry Maguire and his defence struggled to hold Manchester City’s attacking forwards.
I wrote last week that the problem with United is not an ongoing war between Maguire and Cristiano Ronaldo for the captaincy. It is a lack of belief in interim manager, Ralf Rangnick.
Several players are questioning his training methods claiming he just isn’t good enough. They also point out that Rangnick only won the cup in Germany and wasn’t even a coach when he joined United from the Russian league where he was a Sporting Director at Lokomotiv Moscow.
Rashford considering his future at United
Manchester United face an in-form Tottenham Hotspur team this weekend with the London club fresh from a 5-0 thrashing of Everton. Unfortunately, the United dressing room is far from a happy place to be.
The talk around Manchester this week is the news that Marcus Rashford is considering his position at the club. He has been out of form lately. However, with the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo, Edinson Cavani, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood, he expected to play against Manchester City.
Rashford has been telling friends that he fears his England place is threatened if he is not playing regular first-team football. I have heard that England manager Gareth Southgate is reviewing Rashford’s position in his team so Rashford has every right to be worried.
He has started only 11 Premier League games this season and was forced onto the substitute’s bench when manager Ralf Rangnick decided to play 19-year-old Anthony Elanga against City. Rangnick decided to play with Bruno Fernandes as a false number nine with no recognised striker in the middle.
Rashford and Jesse Lingard, another player who intends to leave this summer, came on in the 64th minute. Rangnick has recommended to the United board that they should sign a young upcoming striker this summer which will put more pressure on Rashford.
Eric Bailly is another who is unhappy with his lack of game time. Under Rangnick, he is fifth choice centre-back and is questioning Rangnick’s selection of an out-of-form Harry Maguire playing every week while he watches from the sub’s bench.
£500k for the Gunners
Arsenal players have been promised a bonus of £500k if they make the top four and qualify for the Champions League. They sit fourth at the moment after overtaking a woeful Manchester United over the weekend.
They also have two games in hand. The Champions League can bring approximately £50million to a club. Some players have extra financial deals written into their contracts if they play in the Champions League.
Arteta wants two new strikers and a midfielder this summer and qualification will help to attract the top available talent. The club have confirmed they will spend big money at the end of this season so Arteta can push for the league title next year.
Fofana in, Vardy out at Leicester
French defender Wesley Fofana has signed a five-year contract with Leicester City. The 21-year-old has not played since breaking his leg in a pre-season friendly. However, manager Brendan Rogers told us that he considers Fofana as one of his most valuable players.
Rogers was dismayed this week that his star forward Jamie Vardy will again miss a number of matches due to a knee problem. Vardy was injured in the 1-0 win over Leeds United last Saturday and that was the first time he had started a match in 2022 following a hamstring injury.
Four days earlier, he had scored against Burnley after coming off the bench. Rogers said: “It’s frustrating because you can see the difference he makes to the team with his quality of play and the goals he scores.”
Ten Hag brushes up his English
I was both amused and intrigued this week when I learned that Ajax boss Erik ten Hag is taking English lessons in preparation to impress United’s board when he sits down with them to discuss the manager’s job.
Ten Hag has already told his Ajax bosses that he intends to leave at the end of the season. Do you think he has been given a wink and a nod by someone influential person at United and the job is his if his interview goes well? I wonder.
Klopp presses for five subs
Jurgen Klopp is once again pressing all the buttons to get the league to allow five substitutes per game. He believes it is for “the good of the game”.
The Liverpool supremo says the number of matches being played at the moment is crazy and poses a danger to the players. Klopp said: “We played a final on the Sunday, then Wednesday, then Saturday and now Tuesday. If you can’t make changes that’s actually a horrible schedule. We have pushed each other to insane levels the last few years.”
Varane making his return
Following his attack of Covid 19, Manchester United full-back Raphael Varane returned to training this week. At the time of writing this column, Ralf Rangnick is deciding whether to consider playing the French international and is monitoring his progress. With Varane and Maguire working together in defence, United have not lost a game. Luke Shaw, who also contracted Covid, did not arrive for training on Wednesday.
Hodgson hits back at fans
Still a feisty seventy-four-year-old, Roy Hodgson turned on his Watford supporters this week after they criticised his substitute choices.
Watford suffered their eighth consecutive defeat and Hodgson was booed by the crowd after taking off midfielder Imran Louza and replacing him with Edo Kayembe.
A clearly annoyed Hodgson hit back saying: “I pick the team because I don’t trust your judgement. Fans have got favourites and, unfortunately, we have taken over a team where the fans have decided long ago who their favourites are and who aren’t. I have got to pick teams which I think can win, not just because they are fans' favourites.”
Fiorentina want to sign Gunner Torreira
Italian side Fiorentina are ahead of several clubs in the race to sign Arsenal midfielder Lucas Torreira. He has been on loan at the club this season and has done an impressive job. Torreira does not feature in Mikel Arteta’s long term plans.
Fiorentina have an option to sign the Uruguayan for £12.5million at the end of the season which is considerably less than the £25million paid to take him to the Emirates Stadium in 2018. Torreira is popular with fans and players in Italy and has helped the club to their current 8th place in Serie A where they are fighting for a Champions League qualification place.
Howe has Toon Army cheering again
The new Saudi regime at Newcastle have been praising manager Eddie Howe for taking a failing group of players, adding three new names and producing some sparkling results. When he took over as manager, the Black & Whites couldn’t buy a win but now things are very different.
When Eddie arrived Newcastle were 19th in the Premier League table and only five points away from relegation safety. They now sit in 14th and have earned an impressive 16 points from a possible 18. I witnessed the incredible atmosphere at St James’ Park during the win against Brighton over the weekend and the spirit of both players and supporters was extraordinary.
Newcastle suddenly believe in themselves and Howe has brought the best out of players such as Ryan Fraser, Joelinton and Joe Willock. Combined with new arrivals Dan Burn, Matt Targett and
Kieran Trippier, Newcastle are no longer an easy win. Defender Fabian Schar was set to leave this summer when his contract expires. However, the centre half is now keen to have new contract talks with the club. He said: “When you see where we were a few weeks ago and where we are now, the difference is huge and the change in the team is massive. We are now eight games unbeaten!”
Ten per cent owner Amanda Staveley was all smiles and congratulated Howe this week. Suddenly, the Saudi-backed January spending spree is paying dividends.
Chilwell back in training
Chelsea wing-back Ben Chilwell made a surprise visit to the Cobham training ground on Tuesday and took part in a very light workout session. He sustained a knee ligament injury in November. I contacted my sources at the club’s medical department and whereas they could not confirm that Ben might be able to play again this season, the news is that he is progressing faster than expected.
Chelsea players leave Russia
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and subsequent isolation in sport, all foreign players have been told that if they play for any Russian teams they can tear up their contracts and leave – until June 30 ‚and they can play for a different club in the meantime.
This affects players such as Chelsea’s Victor Moses, who plays for Spartak Moscow. Ex-Norwich boss Daniel Farke has also left Krasnodar without managing a single game and both club and manager agreed to terminate his contract.
One of Chelsea’s future stars is Faustino Anjorin, who was sent out on loan to Lokomotiv Moscow by Thomas Tuchel so he could gain first-team experience. Anjorin broke his metatarsal bone in his foot and returned to the Blues and decided not to go back and subsequently joined Huddersfield for the rest of this season. A lucky escape given what followed his departure.