Chelsea Banned From Offering New Contracts, Buying & Selling Players Following Roman Abramovich’s Sanction.
Following the UK Government’s censure of Roman Abramovich, Chelsea Football Club has been barred from providing new contracts to players and from engaging in transfer activity.
The club was placed up for sale on March 2, but owing to the sanctions, it has been put on hold.
Chelsea, according to Martyn Ziegler, is unable to make any transfers or extend contracts, and is also prohibited from selling items.
This comes after the club said that it would be unable to sell new tickets, meaning that only season ticket holders would be able to attend games until the conclusion of the season.
“Chelsea may still operate under a special licence,” Ziegler said for the Times, “but the sale is now on hold.” For the foreseeable future, the club will not be authorized to sell any additional tickets; only season ticket holders will be able to attend games.
Furthermore, the club is banned from selling items, renewing contracts, or engaging in player transfers.
Antonio Rudiger, Andreas Christensen, and Cesar Azpilicueta are all out of contract at the end of the season, so this is a significant blow for Chelsea.
It had already been rumored that Christensen will join Barcelona this week, with his representatives traveling to Spain between Tuesday and Thursday to finalize the paperwork.
The futures of Rudiger and Azpilicueta were in doubt, but Chelsea have been unable to continue contract discussions with the two, dealing them a major setback as the club now faces losing three defenders at the end of the season.
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Furthermore, because the club is banned to make moves, they may be unable to replace the three, casting question on Thomas Tuchel’s ability to field a team with only two veteran centre backs next season.
The club’s position in the summer remains to be seen, although Chelsea’s options are limited at the present.
