"WHERE’S your money gone?" chanted rival fans, to the tune of the early 1970s bubblegum pop hit Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep after Blues owner Roman Abramovich’s assets – including his football club – were frozen.

But Chelsea’s supporters had the last laugh at the weekend when Kai Havertz controlled a late cross from captain Jorginho and fired in the only goal of the game to send Newcastle home empty-handed, writes Tim Harrison.

It was the fifth league win on the spin. This weekend it’s FA Cup time, with the Blues heading up to the North East themselves to face Middlesbrough… a match you can put your feet up and watch on the BBC at 5.15pm on Saturday.

In fact it’s quarter-final weekend for both Chelsea’s men and women (who host Birmingham at Kingsmeadow on Sunday lunchtime). Spectators at the Riverside will be able to buy programmes, but no Chelsea Women programmes will be printed and ticket sales for that game have stopped.

The Blues’ income streams have dried up, and unless a sale goes through quickly Chelsea will struggle to meet an eye-watering weekly wage bill.

Thomas Tuchel, delighted with his team’s performances despite all the off-field distractions, wants to stay in SW6, despite reported interest from Manchester United. But everything is in the balance.

Newcastle’s Toon army baited the home fans last Sunday with chants suggesting that their reviled former owner Mike Ashley might be planning to bid for Stamford Bridge and its contents.

A grim, defiant gallows humour may be sustaining Chelsea’s loyal fans, but the worsening news in Ukraine increasingly makes football matches seem like an irrelevant sideshow.