Patrick Vieira and Pep Guardiola have been left surprised after Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government, with the latter of the pair feeling sorry for managerial counterpart Thomas Tuchel due to the 'uncomfortable' situation.
Abramovich was placed on the sanctions list alongside Everton's Alisher Usmanov on Thursday morning. Chelsea will be allowed to continue functioning with restrictions under a special sporting licence that expires at the end of May, but its sale has been placed into doubt and the owner will no longer be permitted to invest.
The club released a statement in the afternoon which read: "Chelsea Football Club has been advised that its owner Roman Abramovich has been sanctioned by the UK Government.
"By virtue of his 100 per cent ownership of Chelsea FC plc and affiliated entities, Chelsea FC would normally be subject to the same sanctions regime as Mr Abramovich. However, the UK Government has issued a general licence that permits Chelsea FC to continue certain activities.
"We will fulfil our men’s and women’s team fixtures today against Norwich and West Ham, respectively, and intend to engage in discussions with the UK Government regarding the scope of the licence. This will include seeking permission for the licence to be amended in order to allow the Club to operate as normal as possible. We will also be seeking guidance from the UK Government on the impact of these measures on the Chelsea Foundation and its important work in our communities.
"The club will update further when it is appropriate."
With everything up in the air as Thomas Tuchel takes his troops to do battle in East Anglia, both Vieira and Guardiola have had their say on the situation.
"I don't have an opinion, it's rumours of what's happened and I don't know what's going to happen next time," Guardiola said in his press conference ahead of Manchester City's clash against Crystal Palace.
"Of course, with the position for the manager Thomas Tuchel and the players, it's uncomfortable and I feel sorry for them as they are there do their jobs as best as possible.
"For the rest, I don't know, I have to wait."
Vieira in his pre-Man City presser not only gave an update on Conor Gallagher and his future amid these new sanctions but the Frenchmen also sent Abramovich a message in the process.
He said: "I think I was like everyone else. I don’t know if its surprising or not. But obviously it's a shock. What the consequences are I don’t know for Chelsea. It’s something I want to go into too much detail about.
"I think the future will tell us. Something you can’t take away is his impact on the Premier League and his success with Chelsea. The news is the news and this are the issues that will concern Chelsea."
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