MY ACCOUNT
Kai Havertz says that he and his Chelsea team-mates would pay to travel to away games this season, adding that they must “give the fans a smile” amid the club’s chaotic existence.
The Blues are currently under a fleet of financial sanctions in relation to owner Roman Abramovich, laid down by the United Kingdom government amid the Ukraine-Russia crisis.
Those sanctions include a cap on the cost of travel for away games for the foreseeable future, raising serious questions over whether Chelsea can fulfil their fixture schedule.
But ahead of a trip to France to face Lille in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 clash on Wednesday, Havertz vowed that players would turn out their own pockets if needed to fund their journeys.
“I would pay, it’s no problem,” the German stated. “That’s not a big deal for us. For us to come to the games, that’s the most important thing.
“I think there are a lot of harder things in the world at the moment than if we have to take the train or the bus to an away game. I would pay. It’s no problem.
“I think we are all professional footballers. Everyone knows it’s a strange situation for everyone in the club right now.
“But we are the players, we have to focus on playing football, on the matches, that’s the best we can do.”
Havertz admitted that he was limited to what he could say amid the fluid situation of Chelsea’s day-to-day existence and future, but added that the team could at the very least do their supporters proud.
“All the other stuff, the club has to sort out by themselves, that’s not up to the players,” he added. “I cannot talk about it too much because we are focused on the games and that’s all we can do at the moment.
“It’s not easy. I think such a situation has not happened at Chelsea before, so it’s a little bit strange, but we are professionals and sometimes situations like this can happen.
“It’s not easy for us all, especially for the whole club, the fans, everyone. The best we can do is play good football, try to give the fans a smile.
“In these sort of situations, everything is tough for us. As we saw at the weekend, we can handle these situations and hopefully tomorrow as well.”
