Football: Chelsea, hit by Abramovich sanctions, beat Newcastle 1-0

Chelsea's Kai Havertz celebrates scoring their first goal against Newcastle, in London, on March 13, 2022. PHOTO: REUTERS

LONDON (REUTERS) - Kai Havertz scored an 89th-minute winner to give Chelsea a 1-0 Premier League victory over Newcastle United on Sunday (March 13), in their first home match since Britain's government sanctioned Russian owner Roman Abramovich with an asset freeze.

The visitors, seeking to move further clear of the relegation area, had frustrated the European champions for much of the game with their harrying.

But with the match seemingly heading for a draw, Jorginho launched a long pass over the Newcastle defence to Havertz and the German controlled the ball with his left foot before firing past Martin Dubravka.

Havertz appeared to have got a second in added time but Dubravka got a hand to his shot which dropped onto the bar.

The win left the Blues in third place in the table, 10 points behind leaders Manchester City who play on Monday, but on course for a top-four finish to guarantee a spot in next season's Champions League.

“It was necessary to stay patient and don’t lose the passion and don’t lose the spirit from the game,” Chelsea’s German coach Thomas Tuchel told BBC radio.

“We kept on believing that we could have this one pass, this one run, this one finish that we finally had.”

The action on the pitch at Stamford Bridge was secondary to the turmoil triggered by last week’s decision by the government to freeze Abramovich’s assets after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying he had close ties to President Vladimir Putin over decades. The 55-year-old billionaire has denied having such ties.

Newcastle are 14th, nine points clear of the relegation zone.

The visitors, who had gone nine league games unbeaten, demanded a penalty in the second half when Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah appeared to tug the shirt of Jacob Murphy but referee David Coote ignored their claims.

Newcastle fans goaded their hosts, singing “No noise for the bankrupt boys”.

Chelsea fans speaking before the game said they believed the Abramovich era was over but they expressed hope that a new owner would be found soon.

Abramovich said earlier this month, before he was sanctioned, that he planned to sell the club he bought in 2003 which set Chelsea on a run of success unprecedented in their 117-year history.

There has been no comment from him since the asset freeze. 

Earlier on Sunday, British property developer Nick Candy said he will give Chelsea fans a seat on the board if he buys the club  and also provide short-term funding.

Anyone interested in buying Chelsea can make a proposal to the government, the British government said on Friday and on Saturday it amended its special licence issued to Chelsea to operate so the club could spend £900,000 (S$1.6 million) to stage each game.

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