Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned the European Union ahead of Chelsea's Champions League trip to Lille on Wednesday evening. The 27-state organisation has described Abramovich as a 'Russian oligarch who has long and close ties to Vladimir Putin'.
Chelsea F.C. have been listed as part of his associated entities that include LLC Evraz Holding, Evraz Group SA and Millhouse Capital. Abramovich and 15 other individuals have been added to the EU's list which sees their assets frozen and travel bans introduced.
The news comes less than a week after the 55-year-old was placed on the United Kingdom's sanction list that saw his assets frozen and Chelsea placed under a 'Russian Regulation' licence. That has seen the Blues have to change how they operate as they are unable to sell merchandise, complete transfers or extend contracts, while have a number of other financial limitations placed upon them.
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Since then the Premier League have disqualified Abramovich as a Director of Chelsea Football Club. This action would usually trigger the sale of his shareholding but the Russian has already announced his intention to sell, although under the current licence this would not be permitted. However, the government appears open to the club changing hands provided Abramovich sees none of the money,
RMC suggest UEFA have reassured them that Wednesday's Champions League last 16 match will go ahead. Under the Blues' licence, which currently runs until May 31st, they are allowed to spend £20,000 to travel to away matches creating some logistical issues moving forwards.
Thomas Tuchel detailed how the club could be impacted in his press conference ahead of the trip to France.
He said: "There are restrictions and we have to deal with them. There are adjustments in the amount of staff, who is travelling, how many rooms we have in hotels and how we arrive at matches. There will come some, to my understanding, that we can arrive at on a professional level.
"It isn't about luxury and bling-bling. This is just a professional level of sports, where we play with two days between matches with our opponent having four days between matches and we arrive with the possibilities of injuries. For that, it is better to arrive with a plan rather than a bus.
"We try to do it. From my understanding, we have a framework to go and play in Lille with absolutely no excuses. Regarding these organisations, it is already more difficult to arrange things on a professional level, in the best way possible, for the FA Cup. But we will deal with it.
"As long as we have shirts and are alive as a team, we will be competitive and fight hard for our success. We owe it to the people who support us in a very invisible way. Of course, we are in the spotlight and it is our responsibility to do so. We will do it."
