Middlesbrough
have slammed Chelsea's "bizarre" request to play Saturday's FA Cup
quarter-final at the Riverside behind closed doors.
Chelsea's ticket sales were halted last Thursday in the wake of Roman
Abramovich's sanctioning by the UK government over his links with Russian
president Vladimir Putin.
The Blues are only allowed to continue operating through a special licence
granted by the government, which permits existing ticket holders to attend
matches, but new sales - including home and away matchday tickets - have not
been allowed.
Chelsea have sold 650 tickets out of their initial away allocation of 4,620
at the Riverside and Chelsea believe they are now at a sporting disadvantage
and that a behind-closed-doors game would be "the fairest way of proceeding
in the current circumstances".
The FA has confirmed Chelsea have contacted them to request the game be
played in front of an empty stadium, a move Middlesbrough - whose 30,000
home tickets had all sold out - have called "bizarre" and "without any merit
whatsoever" in a statement on their website.
They wrote: "All concerned are well aware of the reasons Chelsea have been
sanctioned and that this has nothing to do with Middlesbrough Football Club.
"Given the reasons for these sanctions, for Chelsea to seek to invoke
sporting "integrity" as reason for the game being played behind closed doors
is ironic in the extreme.
"We currently await formal notification from the FA of the next steps but
rest assured Middlesbrough will resist Chelsea's actions in the strongest
terms."
Chelsea Supporters Trust have also called on the club to withdraw its
request, saying "playing behind closed doors does not benefit any
supporters". The group also re-iterated its request to the Government to
relax its licence and allow the Blues to resume selling match tickets.
Chelsea have been in discussions with the Office of Financial Sanctions
Implementation about ticket sales for the game, but has been unable to find
a breakthrough as yet - and a request to give tickets away to fans for free
has not been answered by the government.
In a statement on their website posted earlier on Tuesday, they wrote: "It
is important for the competition that the match against Middlesbrough goes
ahead, however it is with extreme reluctance that we are asking the FA board
to direct that the game be played behind closed doors for matters of
sporting integrity.
"Chelsea FC recognises that such an outcome would have a huge impact on
Middlesbrough and its supporters, as well as our own fans who have already
bought the limited number of tickets that were sold before the licence was
imposed, but we believe this is the fairest way of proceeding in the current
circumstances."
Middlesbrough, who beat Manchester United and Tottenham to reach this stage,
have been contacted for comment.
Sports Minister suggests ticket sales
could resume
Sports Minister Nigel Huddlestone gave evidence to the Department of Media,
Culture and Sport select committee on Tuesday and said the government may
amend its licence to allow Chelsea to sell tickets, so long as Abramovich
does not profit from the move.
He said: "The measures we have taken and the licence we have given to
Chelsea is to precisely stop [Chelsea going out of business]. It is to allow
Chelsea still to play, for staff to still be paid, to honour ticket sales
already, and we are discussions with Chelsea and the fans to see if we can
allow further ticket sales, because we want the sanctions to hit those we
intend to hit and not others.
"We are looking at options. But there will be consequences of sanctions.
Roman Abramovich has links to Vladimir Putin, and le's not forget this is
because of in invasion of a sovereign nation where people are dying.
"But we want to ensure the sanctions hit those we intend to hit and there is
minimal impact elsewhere. But there will be inconvenience as a result. We
would welcome the sale (of the club) and we would change the licence to
enable that sale, and that would be important for Chelsea."
Analysis: Chelsea move all about putting
pressure on government
Sky Sports News chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol:
"Chelsea have been in talks daily with the government, saying these
restrictions to sell tickets are unfair and need to be relaxed. They were
even willing to give away 4,000 tickets away for free to their fans, but
have not heard back from the government.
"I don't think Chelsea are expecting Middlesbrough or the FA to agree to
play this game behind closed doors. They understand a lot of Middlesbrough
fans have bought tickets for the game and it's a big occasion for them.
"I think this is about applying a little bit of pressure on the government,
saying this is the situation, you need to let us sell tickets because we
can't carry on like this.
"Separately is the issue that Chelsea can only spend £20,000 on away travel.
If that is in place on Saturday, Chelsea will not be able to get to
Middlesbrough and return in the fashion they are used to. They could all get
on a coach, drive there and back - but normally it would cost a club the
kind of Chelsea something like £60,000 to travel to Middlesbrough and back."
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."
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