Eddie Howe makes honest Roman Abramovich admission ahead of Chelsea vs Newcastle United

Antonio Conte says he is happy he chose Spurs over Man United

Mikel Arteta Pleased With Form Shown By Thomas Partey

Mikel Arteta Outlines Determination To Return Arsenal To Champions League

Chelsea vs Newcastle: Match Preview

Conte confirms Sessegnon and Skipp are out of Man United game

Jurgen Klopp Ongoing Interest In Gabriel Martinelli

Arsenal V Leicester City Match Preview

Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe says Chelsea's off-field problems shouldn't affect their match at Stamford Bridge this afternoon.

The Blues’ world was turned upside down on Thursday when the UK Government decided to sanction Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich due to his close links to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is currently waging war in Ukraine.

As part of the sanctions, which has seen Abramovich’s assets frozen, Chelsea are no longer able to sell match tickets, negotiate player contracts, buy or sell players, sell anything in the club shop or spend more than £500,000 per fixture, per team when hosting games.

Thomas Tuchel’s side were left as surprised as most of the public when the news broke last week but the team still managed to pull off a 3-1 victory at Carrow Road to settle any nerves their off-field dramas would spill onto the pitch.

They entertain the Magpies at Stamford Bridge today and Howe - who has guided his Newcastle side ten points clear of the relegation zone with a midweek win over Southampton - says it’ll be business as usual.

“I can only answer in terms of the football, and I don’t think it will have any bearing on Chelsea and how they play,” he told reporters. “For us, it can’t change our preparation in any way.

“I’ve been watching Chelsea historically, and I’ll be trying to build a game plan to go there and win.