Premier League: Chelsea beat Newcastle 1-0 at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, thanks to Kai Havertz’s late goal, while Arsenal moved into the top four with a 2-0 win against Leicester City. The European champions are still reeling from the impact of the UK government’s sanctions against billionaire owner Roman Abramovich for alleged ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is waging war on Ukraine. Chelsea has only been able to continue operating thanks to a special licence that comes with a number of conditions, including a prohibition on selling tickets and merchandise.
There was little instant change once the action began in front of a packed-out crowd at Stamford Bridge, with all tickets sold prior to the announcement of punishment on Thursday.
Prior to the match, both Chelsea’s technical and performance advisor Petr Cech and manager Thomas Tuchel could not guarantee the Blues would be able to complete their remaining fixtures unless the licence restrictions are loosened.
There was no screaming of Abramovich’s name by Chelsea fans, unlike in recent weeks, however, there was still a banner with his image proclaiming the “Roman Empire.”
The upheaval triggered by suspicions about Abramovich’s fortune has reignited criticism of Newcastle’s choice to be taken up by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund earlier this season.
The Magpies’ first transfer window under new ownership yielded quick results, as they went undefeated in nine league games to climb out of the relegation zone.
Newcastle felt disgruntled that Havertz was even on the field to score the game-winning goal after catching Dan Burn with an elbow in the first half and only receiving a yellow card.
The German then supplied the game’s only true highlight when he expertly controlled Jorginho’s ball over the top before poking home the game’s winner in the 89th minute.
“We feel sorry for everyone. The supporters, the workers, not just as professionals,” said Havertz.
“We try to give everything for them at the moment. We have to stand together, we try to do this and give them a good feeling.”
Chelsea’s third-place finish was cemented, and they are still on track to earn the much-needed financial boost of qualifying for next season’s Champions League.
Arsenal is also on the verge of returning to the Champions League for the first time in six seasons after a fifth successive win put them back in front of Manchester United with three games remaining.
The Gunners dominated from the start and took the lead on 11 minutes when Thomas Partey took advantage of Leicester’s frailty at set-pieces to head home the opener.
Caglar Souyuncu handled Partey’s header in the second goal, and Alexandre Lacazette rifled the resultant penalty high past, Kasper Schmeichel.
For football live update, Premier League, football club, football match, football result, football team, football fixtures, football championship and other football news follow livematchupdatesnews.com.
