1.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 07:59:47
The situation at Chelsea is pretty sad, bin off Abramovich sure but I don't understand how there is talk about the whole club essentially being shut down, staff sacked, fans unable to attend games, its crazy.
Can understand Abramovich needing to go but Chelsea is much more than just Abramovich and the whole club being punished just doesn't seem fair.

2.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 08:34:28
Pretty rich that the same government who not more than 12 months ago proclaimed things like ‘football is nothing without fans’ during the super league debacle, has now shafted Chelsea and its fans in such brutal fashion to make a political statement that is selfishly motivated. 12 months ago football clubs were, according to them, institutions and community pillars that are so much more than simply a business or a toy for the people they are owned by. How their tune changes as soon as they have an opportunity to exploit a period of crisis and armed conflict to boost their ratings, a’la Thatcher and the Falklands. Also pretty rich considering they’ve had absolutely no problem with oligarchs and other dodgy foreign businessmen flooding this country with their money over the last 40 years, driving up housing prices and the cost of living for ordinary people, all in the name of free market capitalism, and that’s before you even start to go into the donations they’ve received from them or how Abramovich isn’t anywhere near as bad as Newcastles Saudi owners.

The West created Putin and this crisis through their own complacency and economic doctrine, and now we’re supposed to believe everything they say, that they have really opposed all of this all along and that none of it is politically motivated. I’m all for them doing whatever it takes to end this war and oust a leader as dangerous as Putin, but i can’t uncouple that from the blatantly transparent tactics of reputation enhancing populism being deployed by struggling leaders such as Johnson. Unfortunately the Chelsea fans and the football club have been caught in that crossfire and i’m not entirely sure it is fair.

3.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 09:03:54
Kids being blown up isn't fair. Women fleeing their home isn't fair. Sons and fathers dying in combat isn't fair.

Did you see the reports Maxx? Abramovich is a large shareholder in a company which makes steel for Russian Tanks. The same man who bankrolled Chelsea's success for 19 years made some of his money helping to supply war machines to Putin. Machines now flattening Ukrainian towns and cities. You make your own assessment on that because mine isn't suitable for these boards as i won't keep a cool head.

4.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 09:07:53
I wanted to post something similar yesterday AW but struggled to type something as eloquently as you.
Totally agree and have massive sympathy for all Chelsea employees and fans.
These guys change their tune with the wind.

5.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 09:17:48
That isn't what is happening Maxx. The club is not being shut down, its activities are being frozen until Abramovich relinquishes ownership. There is no official confirmation staff are being sacked, season tickets holders can still go to games, they aren't even able to sell their best players even if they wanted to. As for the merchandise, fans will still be able to get it from other retailers until stock runs out. People in Ukraine are losing their homes, their communities, their lives and also face losing their homeland as a sovereign nation. If anyone loses their job then that is a shame but everyone else involved with Chelsea aren't really suffering in comparison.

Most people involved with Chelsea, fans included, have been more than happy to be associated with Abramovich for the last 2 decades. These are the consequences.

6.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 09:25:04
I am in no way advocating Putin or his action or war. But Ukraine and mainly it’s people are being made scapegoat of a bad game being played by US and it’s Allie’s in NATO

Russia was given assurance NATO will not move into Eastern Europe and Baltic region this is from 1990
was US not ready to go to war during Cuban missile crises

But they have been slowly bribing their ARMs and weapons to Russias neighbourhood.

They gave the muppet a silly reason to go to war with Ukraine

Ukraine is been just made a very poor example of power play between Russia and West.

7.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 09:44:21
The West made Putin - where’s your head at? He’s a deranged mass murderer. He cannot be stopped through war due to his nuclear arsenal so only way is economic pressure which may take years but has to be done.

It’s only happening now as he’s only just invaded Ukraine.

The invasion he has chosen to take (no one else so don’t come up with whatifism) will mean unbelievable death and devastation for innocent people and until it’s over very sadly that means the word fair won’t be seen much in practice.

If Liverpool had the sanctions Chelsea have and it meant in part it led to the end of this nightmare for 1ms of people then I’d take them in a heartbeat.

8.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 10:27:57
MK you're right none of that is fair but that doesn't mean it's any fairer that people over here are needlessly losing their jobs. Like I'm sorry but I just think that's a bad mindset, what's happening in Ukraine is beyond awful but that doesn't mean others can't feel aggrieved if they are having a hard time. No matter what someone is going through you can always find someone who has it worse. It's like walking upto a stab victim and telling him to stop moaning because there's there's child in Africa starving to death.

9.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 11:05:07
Well said MK and Babbity
For years rival fans have said that Chelsea was just a play thing for Abramovich and if he decided to jump ship the club would be in turmoil. Well guess what in the most horrific way we could imagine this is now happening. I am sure Chelsea will get through this crisis, unlike many of the people in the Ukraine. Maybe there is a lesson to be learned when checking the suitability of new owners buying football clubs (Newcastle) .

10.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 11:36:05
Agreed Gaga.
I’d reference David Conn’s article in The Guardian also.

11.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 11:38:37
How many people have lost their jobs so far Sammy? I'd love to know the inside scoop because the official figure is zero.

Everyone's suffering is valid but sometimes it's important to read the room. Your analogy is ridiculous by the way because the two scenarios you gave are totally unrelated. Chelsea fans facing a little bit of uncertainly is linked to the war so it's not great tact to try and make it about themselves because they can't buy a shirt or tickets for a few months.

A better analogy would be if the mother of the guy who stabbed you started bleating publically that her family was suffering because you had taken her son to court for attempted murder. Be a bit insulting her making it about them in your face wouldn't it.

You think Ukrainians aren't seeing the behaviour of Chelsea fans and ex-players? Guys like John Terry have publically glorified Roman, and Chelsea fans were singing his name literally last night. Hard to have any sympathy for them right now. I do hope nobody loses their job, but right now that's a mute point and not what people are whining about.

12.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 12:06:04
2 million people displaced from their own country in circa 3 weeks. 5% of the Ukraine population. Just let that sink in before people try to sympathise with some rich Russian who is getting it a bit tough at the minute.

My view is that every government needs to do whatever is necessary to stop this invasion and preferably remove Putin. Desperate times call for Desperate measures.

13.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 12:58:16
Mk s right how anybody can have sympathy for Chelsea is beyond me this has needed to happen for a long time blood money should never be welcome in sport whichever sport it is, the people of the Ukraine are the ones we should be shedding a Tear for.

14.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 13:28:52
Sorry but as the saying goes, make your bed, now lie in it. Chelsea new what they were getting into, Abramovich has been a close to Putin for years. Abramovich made billions by being given land that was oil rich by Putin in order for them to make a huge profit
The land was public land and the deeds were given to Abromovich in order for a few to profit from rather than being used to make the lives of millions of Russians more tolerable.

Chelsea deserve everything they get…No symlpfrpm me.

15.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 13:41:11
Meant sympathy 😂.

16.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 14:15:13
Wasn't trying to start a fight on here, just wanted to say it'd be a shame for fans to miss games and the 'every day staff's losing their jobs because of the owner.

Sanctions against the club will affect the little guys more than the big guys.

Obviously none of that compares to the horror going on in Ukraine at the moment, wasn't trying to say it did.

17.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 14:35:20
MK is right. Anyone feeling sorry for Chelsea needs to check their priorities.

18.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 15:32:55
The thing that winds me up most is the outcry and sympathy card being played by some Chelsea fans. Instead of questioning their owner and wondering what he has done that is so bad, they’ve instead thrown their toys out of the pram and made out it’s all a conspiracy against them. Awful lot of whataboutism going on too instead of just trying to understand why it’s happening. Find it all a bit sickening.

19.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 15:37:16
US drops bombs everywhere for decades. I don’t see anyone has issues with that. The steel factory also make pipe to transfer gas to UK. Again no one has issues. I can’t believe so many people are buying this government bull.

20.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 16:54:44
To me, everyone involved in allowing RA to buy the club and allowing these oligarchs to stash their dirty money via investments and property acquisitions is to blame for this. The PL could have stopped RA from buying the club but they looked the other way cos of the money. Chelsea FC could have sold the club to another buyer with NO ties to Putin BUT they didn't and made the choice to sell to him despite his well-known ties to Putin. Again, for the money. In the end, they made a deal and it is now time for them to pay up their end of the bargain. It is what it is.

21.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 17:19:56
Let the fans in, donate the proceeds to charities. Simple.

22.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 17:19:56
Let the fans in, donate the proceeds to charities. Simple.

23.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 18:41:48
Agree Oli. My only issue with what they are doing to Chelsea is it should have been done sooner. Where have they been until now? Same with the Saudi owners at Newcastle. These are countries with some of the worst human rights and corruption statistics on earth yet are free to come here and do business with no restrictions. The Tories should spend a bit less time worrying about poor refugees and asylum seekers looking to make a better life for themselves, and more time on these corrupt billionaires taking the country for a ride.

24.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 18:54:55
This is why they say that Sports and Politics should never mix with each other. Sports are always a uniting factor and politics (and politicians) the exact opposite in dividing people.

Olired is right. In the end you get what you ask for. Giving the green light to a person with close links to an authoritarian leader and regime was always going to leave you open to politics and its consequences. And the same could happen to Newcastle's owners, you never know.

25.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 19:45:11
Chelsea FC isn’t an issue per se.

However, Chelsea is a financial asset owned by a supporter of a regime that has chosen to invade another sovereign state and the sanctions are appropriate in my opinion

That said, to the best of my knowledge, based on the available evidence, no Chelsea employee has lost their job or suffered financially and by the terms of the licence they are operating under the situation won’t change.

The day to day operations of the football club, from the perspective of the employees hasn’t changed.

Chelsea fans, ex-players, Abramovich apologists are, at the very best, misguided in trying to separate his beneficial impact on the club with his other business interests and the people he chooses to conduct business with. Might also be worth the people changing his name take a look at his actions prior to the sanctions, firstly trying to palm off responsibility for the club, whilst trying to retain ownership (protecting his financial interests until ‘the fuss’ has died down) and then trying to sell the asset before his funds were frozen.

It needs to be remembered that Abramovich didn’t give the order to invade Ukraine but it should also be remembered that as a prominent Russian figure, neither has he (public ally) condemned the war or chosen to divest himself of his Russian business interests, as per the example of the production of steel for the construction of military equipment mentioned earlier in the thread.

{Ed002's Note - The first people to lose their jobs at Chelsea will be at the hotel at the ground who cannot take bookings any longer - the hotel was donated free of charge to the NHS workers during the lock down where these employees looked after them and fed them on the orders of Mr Abramovich.}

26.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 21:15:16
Tell me, how did Mr Abramovich acquire the funds to finance his purchase of the football club (and hotel / hospital) .

I presume that when Chelsea is sold the hotel will be bombed from the face of the earth and the staff will never be able to carry on in their roles for the new owners?

I’m also pretty sure that if it comes to it losing a job (bad though that is) doesn’t quite equate to being killed by invading troops or have maniacs taking pot shots at the largest nuclear plant in Europe 19 miles away from where you live?

27.) 11 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 22:57:44
Exactly WDW. I’m sure it’ll be a massive consolation to the people of Ukraine. His steel may make the tanks that are bombing maternity wards and slaughtering your wives and children but Mr Abramovich paid for a few NHS meals and hospitality.

28.) 12 Mar 2022
11 Mar 2022 22:36:54
Ed2,what are your thoughts on Roman? He clearly has links to Putin so right thing to so is sanction him yes?

{Ed002's Note - Obviously he has links, he was a state governor.}

29.) 12 Mar 2022
12 Mar 2022 04:40:01
I completely forgot, deranged mass murderers really do come from nowhere. It’s not as if fascist dictators are always consistently born out of the anger and confusion cultivated by purposefully inequitable and unfair economic systems or anything. Yes Putin is an extremely bad man and both him and Abramovich completely sprung from nowhere and it had nothing to do with the mass liberalisation and subsequent corruption of public Soviet property post 1991 as per the Washington Consensus. How silly of me.

30.) 12 Mar 2022
12 Mar 2022 04:42:08
Mass media miss direction going on here.

Killing innocent men women and children is 100% wrong and you are no longer of use to humanity. Terrible what the ukrainian people are going through.

Closer to home though.

What about boris?

Countless old people died alone without family holding their hand? Some dying as a result of isolation while he partied away.

Countless more are likely to die as they choose between eating and staying warm.

We pay him (them) taxes. Are we as bad as roman?

Cause boris is still there and not a pitchfork in sight.

The west are the truer evil in all of this. 90% of americans sit in their home and celebrate their country despite their evil endouvers in the shrouded name of justice and liberty. Herded like sheep to sing the anthem.

Rb won't donounce russia just like the owners of liverpool city newcastle and countless others won't denounce their own countries wrong doings. Its the wealth game and how quickly it can be removed.

Chelsea football club and its fans have nothing to do with the war. Its media misdirection at a very convenient time for number 10.

Look deep enough to anyone who has mass wealth and you will find the crushed treadmarked bones of the common man.

Pretty sure roman ain't pushing the button on any bombs but he has ties to the finger and is paying the price.

How that relates to chelsea as a football club being blackened beyond repair is a bit confusing to me. Owners come and go. The football club remains. A football club and its fans cannot be held responsible for its owners. Sure we had hicks and gillett. Two upstanding individuals who done nothing but help the common man.

If rb wants to sell let him sell. Quickly move on and no further fuss as far as a football club is concerned.

The media arm of a government that deals in misdirection however might want to keep this distraction going as long as they can. Sneak in a few more pay rises in plain sight while the average man and woman tries to figure out how to travel to work, feed themselves and their children and stay warm at the same time as wages watch inflation and price hikes sail off into the distance.

31.) 12 Mar 2022
12 Mar 2022 08:43:55
Do we really have to read tin foil hat wearing nonsense like Wolverine reds post?