Chelsea fans have been asked to refrain from chanting in support of their owner and Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich by a UK Government minister.
Supporters of the west London club sang Abramovich's name during the Premier League win at Norwich on Thursday night, hours after the Government had imposed sanctions on him due to his links to Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Abramovich's UK assets have been frozen while Chelsea have been issued a special licence to continue operating under strict conditions designed to prevent the Russian-Israeli billionaire generating new revenue.
The club cannot sell new tickets for home and away matches, sell merchandise or buy or sell new players, however, the Stamford Bridge side could be allowed a return to selling tickets for future matches by donating all profits as humanitarian aid to Ukraine, according to reports.
The licence can be varied or revoked at any time, and the club said on Thursday it would seek to amend the licence to allow them to operate as close to normal as possible.
UK Technology minister Chris Philp urged Blues fans to remember why Abramovich had been sanctioned in the first place.
"I'm a football fan myself, I'm a Palace fan, in south London. So I understand why fans are very attached to their football clubs," he told BBC Radio Four's Today Programme on Friday morning.
"But Roman Abramovich is someone who has been sanctioned now, yesterday morning, for his very close links to Vladimir Putin and the Putin regime.
"And I just say respectfully to the Chelsea fans, I know he's done a lot for the club, but the humanitarian situation in Ukraine and what the Russian regime are doing to civilians - shelling maternity hospitals and shooting civilians who are fleeing down humanitarian corridors - and that is more important than football.
"And I say that as a football fan myself, and I would just ask them to keep that in mind."
On Friday it emerged that Chelsea have had several accounts temporarily frozen while banks assess the Stamford Bridge club's new operating licence.
Chelsea are understood to be hopeful the suspensions will be lifted shortly, moving the west London club closer back towards normal operation.
Blues chiefs were understood to have been locked in negotiations with Government officials throughout Friday on amendments to that new licence.
Chelsea expect negotiations with Downing Street to continue into next week as the two parties thrash out an easing of the restrictions.
The Premier League club will seek a relaxation of limits like the £20,000 travel cap for away matches for example, with a typical Premier League spend far closer to £30,000 per match.
Chelsea are thought to have their travel and accommodation bills already paid for the rest of this season for existing fixtures, but this does not cover cup competitions.
The Blues are slated to face Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Saturday, 19 March.
Under the current rules, Chelsea cannot sell any new tickets for that match, which would severely hit Championship club Middlesbrough’s gate revenue.
Chelsea cannot sell any new match programmes for Sunday’s Premier League home clash with Newcastle, so vendors are thought to be unable to work at Stamford Bridge.
Abramovich bought Chelsea in 2003 and has led the club to 21 trophies in the 19 years since.
But the club's future is now uncertain. The existing licence for the club does not permit a sale, but the UK Government has said it is open to a sale and would consider an application for a new licence to make the transaction possible.
The key condition of any sale would be that Abramovich does not benefit in any way.
He had put the club up for sale on 2 March, pledging to donate all proceeds barring transaction costs to a charitable foundation to be created to aid victims of the war in Ukraine.
Abramovich also vowed to write off the £1.5billion in loans he has made to Chelsea, and has been determined to see the club taken on by an owner with similarly lofty ambitions for the European and world champions.
On the pitch, however, the men's team secured a 3-1 win at Norwich, while the women's side beat West Ham 4-1 on Thursday night.
"The situation will not go away, maybe tomorrow it will change again, but it will not go away," men's head coach Thomas Tuchel said. "I am still happy to be here and still happy to be manager of a strong team. I know there is a lot of noise around."
Chelsea Women head coach Hayes told Sky Sports News: "There's no denying it’s a difficult day, but I think it’s important that we give it time.
"The club’s put a statement out. I understand the club is working with the Government to dissect the interpretation of that, so I think for all the questions everybody has, players, fans, staff, we have to give the club time to work through that."
It is understood that property tycoon Nick Candy's vision for a redeveloped Stamford Bridge could hand the British billionaire an edge in the battle to buy the club.
Chelsea’s sale remains technically on hold for now, but the Treasury could issue a new licence to allow a deal to go through and senior UK government sources have indicated that licence changes are likely.
A spokesperson for Candy confirmed the 49-year-old’s continued interest in Chelsea.
"We are examining the details of yesterday’s announcement and we are still interested in making a bid," said Candy’s spokesperson.
"Clearly this is a time of great uncertainty for all Chelsea fans. In our view, no one is the owner of a football club – you are the custodian of it for the fans and the community."
A host of US investors still harbour interest in Chelsea, with LA Dodgers part-owner Todd Boehly part of one consortium, and Chicago Cubs owner Tom Ricketts another with a strongly rumoured interest.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Government and the Premier League would likely oversee any Chelsea sale now, and Candy’s status and credentials could sit well with those power brokers.
Candy has already declared his ambition to revamp Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge stadium should he win the race to buy the club.
He is putting together a consortium offer for the Blues and his property sphere nous should find favour in Downing Street and Treasury corridors, it is understood.
Analysts believe a fully modernised and expanded Stamford Bridge could boost Chelsea’s commercial revenues by up to 25% per annum.
That major potential uplift, if coupled with an astute financing plan for the stadium rebuild, is among the main reasons for the continued brisk interest in the Chelsea sale.
Boosting the hotel offering at Stamford Bridge and also conferencing facilities would be among the other offshoots of a stadium rebuild.
A Government-conducted sale of Chelsea could see the purchasing capital frozen, or directed to charitable causes.
Abramovich may not be given the opportunity to set up his new foundation, but his prior public claims of not wanting to take any proceeds from the sale point to a potential acceptance of Government oversight in light of the sanctions.
Chelsea will continue negotiating with the Government over alterations to the current trading licence to allow the Blues to operate as close to normal as possible.
Chelsea cannot make any new signings however, nor can the Blues tie up any new contracts for existing players.
Club captain Cesar Azpilicueta and fellow defenders Toni Rudiger and Andreas Christensen are all out of contract in the summer, and Chelsea could lose all three on free transfers.
