Thomas Tuchel has vowed to meet his “responsibility” to Chelsea’s behind-the-scenes employees who continue to fret for their futures.

Kai Havertz’s last-ditch goal steered Chelsea to a 1-0 win over Newcastle on Sunday, their fifth-straight Premier League victory.

The Blues’ commanding form on the field belies the club’s state of flux after owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK Government.

Chelsea’s sale can continue under Government supervision, but Abramovich cannot profit after Downing Street claimed to have proven the 55-year-old’s direct links to Vladimir Putin amid Russia’s continued invasion of Ukraine.

Chelsea fans enjoyed a fleeting moment of joy and exhilaration sparked by the genius of Kai Havertz after 88 minutes of frustration on Sunday. That sublime goal was a welcome distraction to many after a turbulent week, but the cold reality bites today amid the uncertain future of the club. A peculiar atmosphere greeted those in attendance for the match against Newcastle following the financial restrictions imposed on Roman Abramovich. It was a grim outlook for the Premier League as the two clubs that best represent the height of sportswashing fought it out for three points.

The uncomfortable background, from the government sanctions on the Blues to the execution of 81 people on Saturday in Saudi Arabia, was only intensified by the visiting supporters. The Toon Army revelled in their own newfound wealth from their Saudi benefactors, while lauding the miserable outlook of their opponents with Saudi flags seen fluttering in the Shed End throughout.

United host Atletico Madrid on Tuesday after drawing the first leg 1-1 while holders Chelsea won 2-0 against Lille at Stamford Bridge and travel to France for Wednesday’s match.

Here, the PA news agency takes a closer look at Atletico and Lille.

The unthinkable could soon become the inevitable, with Chelsea, Champions League winners and once one of the richest clubs on the planet, facing a very real danger of entering administration following the government’s decision to sanction Roman Abramovich.

That’s the warning from one of the country’s leading sports finance experts, who believes that a lack of capital in the London club’s bank account could see the situation at Stamford Bridge unravel at breakneck speed.

The decision to sanction Abramovich on Thursday has thrown the club’s viability into serious doubt and although the government has said it will do it all can to protect Chelsea, it’s clear that unless the club is sold extremely quickly, the five-time Premier League champions are in the kind of financial peril that was unthinkable with the Russian at the helm.

Sir Martin Broughton is compiling his own bid to buy Chelsea, the PA news agency understands.

The 74-year-old was due to meet with Chelsea supporters groups representatives after the Blues’ first match under the new Government operating licence.

Broughton spent a short stint as Liverpool chairman in 2010 in order to broker the Reds’ eventual sale to Tom Werner’s Fenway Sports Group.

The business magnate won a court battle to push on Liverpool’s sale to FSG, who have helped drive the Anfield club back to Premier League and European summit.

“I thought we believed until the end and that is our group, it is our mentality.” said Chelsea midfielder, Jorginho, about the team’s last minute victory over Newcaste yesterday.

After a fairly dull game, bereft of any quality in either final third, Kai Havertz met a pass from Jorginho in the box and scored in the 89th minute to put Chelsea in front and ultimately earn them three points.

“That is what we have been showing all the time now, we keep focused, work hard and fight and push until the end. We deserved the win. It was a great result, atmosphere and great for the fans,’ the Italian said.

‘Kai [Havertz] is an amazing player and guy, who can make the difference for us. We believe in him because you can see the quality he has and the potential that is there. He is a key player for this team and can make the difference like we saw.”

Amid the uncertainty around Chelsea - following Roman Abramovich being sanctioned and having his assests frozen - Jorginho says that focusing on what happens on the pitch helps the players to deal with the surrounding noise. He added:

“It is a good challenge to be honest because we’re all human and when there’s so much going around it is not easy. We try to isolate sometimes, we try to focus what we need to do because we are also professional as you could see we know our targets and we know what we’re here for. We’re fighting for that.”

Former Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech has admitted the club’s ability to finish the Premier League season in not in their hands amid negotiations with the UK Government over its operating licence.

Chelsea were allowed to continue with “football-related activities” after being handed a special license following the sanctioning of owner Roman Abramovich, leaving the club facing an uncertain future.

Negotiations have been held with the government over amending the licence to allow Chelsea to operate as normally as possible but under the conditions that Abramovich cannot make a profit.

Cech, who is now employed by Chelsea as a technical and performance advisor, admitted that the Premier League side had been left with more questions than answers amid what he described as a “difficult situation”.

The chants grew louder as the Newcastle fans closed in on Stamford Bridge through the throngs of the subdued Chelsea support.

“Chelsea get bankrupt everywhere they go,” they gloated.

The chance to seize on the misfortune of a rival was an open goal the supporters from northeast England were not going to miss.

But beyond the taunting songs, there were few obvious signs around Chelsea’s stadium to signal the unprecedented situation the Premier League club now finds itself in — only permitted to operate under a special British government license after owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned over his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Freezing the assets of Abramovich restricts Chelsea’s ability to generate income. So the club shops remained closed as they have been since Thursday when the sanctions against Abramovich were announced. No matchday magazines were allowed to be sold. The only fans allowed into Sunday’s 1-0 victory over Newcastle had to have bought tickets before Thursday.

The US merchant bank, Raine Group, has extended the deadline for official bids to buy Chelsea Football Club to Friday this week.

Potential buyers have been informed that a sale of the club could go through rapidly despite Chelsea still not having permission to sell up as part of the special licence they have been granted to continue football operations.

Due to Roman Abramovich being sanctioned by the UK Government and having his assets frozen, the club is up for sale and it is understood the Government are open to allowing a sale as long as no funds go to the Russian billionaire.

UK property tycoon Nick Candy has confirmed he is trying to buy the club and plans to appoint a fan representative to the board if successful.

The US-Swiss consortium of Todd Boehly and Hansjorg Wyss have already put forward a bid, while a Saudi Media-led consortium are also interested.

The Ricketts family, who own the Chicago Cubs, and New York Jets owner Woody Johnson have also noted their interest in Chelsea.

Abramovich’s initial valuation of £4 billion is reportedly too high with a figure of £2.5bn more likely - Candy is ready to bid as high as this.

Raine Group extended the deadline by three days after the process was halted due to Abramovich’s sanctions.

According to sources at the EU, diplomats asked the Commission - which drafted the economic sanctions - for assurances that the new economic measures on Russian oligarchs cannot be successfully challenged in EU courts.

No concerns were raised about the new listings of oligarchs and businessmen - which are in a separate legal document drafted by the EU external action service - and one diplomat was confident that Abramovich’s sanctioning “will go through”.

Further Russian oligarchs will be added to the EU list after dozens have already been sanctioned.

The new sanctions will hit people active in the Russian steel industry and others who provide financial services, military products and technology to the Russian state.

Abramovich holds a Portuguese passport, which means that Portugal could in principle refrain from imposing on him the asset freeze and travel ban decided at EU level which is aleady in place on Chelsea’s owner in Britain.