Chelsea face losing all their off contract players at the end of the season.
The Daily Mail says a number of key first-team players are set to depart Chelsea this summer after owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK Government on Thursday morning, a decision which has thrown the London club into turmoil.
Included are club captain Cesar Azpilicueta and key central defenders Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen, whose contracts are set to expire this summer.
Abramovich was one of seven oligarchs to be hit with an asset freeze, not only making his plan to sell the club impossible but also having significant ramifications on the side's day-to-day functions.
Chelsea's status as a 'significant cultural asset' has seen the club granted a special licence to continue playing, with their Premier League clash against Norwich on Thursday night going ahead as planned.
Abramovich will be deprived of any profits, however, with the club also banned from selling match tickets or signing new players moving forward.
Crucially, they won't be able to tie any of their players down to new contracts, though they will continue to be paid in full, alongside all staff members at the club.
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