Roman Abramovich: Chelsea’s Thomas Tuchel questions Boris Johnson’s ‘priorities’ after Prime Minister’s urges end to chant | Football News

Thomas Tuchel has questioned the government’s priorities after Chelsea fans were urged to stop chanting Roman Abramovich’s name following his UK sanctions.

Chelsea owner Abramovich was sanctioned by the government last Thursday after Downing Street claimed to have proven the 55-year-old’s links to Vladimir Putin.

The Russian-Israeli billionaire put Chelsea up for sale on March 2 amid Russia’s continued invasion of Ukraine, and some Blues fans have continued to chant his name at games ever since.

Chelsea are still able to operate under a special government licence despite Abramovich’s other UK assets being frozen, with Blues bosses lobbying Downing Street on relaxations to allow the Champions League holders to operate in close to normal fashion, including selling tickets and merchandise.

When questioned on Johnson’s call on Chelsea fans, Tuchel replied: “I just heard about it some minutes ago. I don’t know if, in these times, if it is the most important discussion to have in Parliament.

“I don’t know if fan chants being discussed in Parliament means that we have to worry about the priorities of this government.

“But OK. Listen, no need to comment from me. We have really far more urgent things to discuss and handle.

“There are restrictions and we have to deal with it. There are adjustments in the amount of staff, who is travelling, how many rooms we have in hotels and how we arrive at matches.”

Tuchel: Increasing travel budget not about ‘bling-bling’

Chelsea’s new licence limits the club to spending £20,000 per away match on travel, though the Blues are looking to increase that figure in discussion with the government.

The average Premier League spend per away match comes in at roughly £30,000 and European away fixtures add an extra premium.

Tuchel admitted Chelsea have already had to cut their cloth accordingly ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League last-16 second leg in Lille.

But the Blues boss insisted Chelsea’s demands are not about luxury, but instead about elite athletes avoiding possible soft-tissue injuries amid a packed schedule.

“It isn’t about luxury and bling-bling,” said Tuchel. “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 plane rather than a bus.

“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. Of course, we are in the spotlight and it is our responsibility to do so. We will do it.”