Alan Shearer has launched a staunch defence of Chelsea and Newcastle supporters by insisting they "don't have to agree" with the owners of their clubs.
Football club ownership has been a hotly-debated topic this season since the Magpies were taken over by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) in October. The PIF is chaired by Saudi royal Mohammed bin Salman, whose regime saw 81 men executed in one day earlier in March.
Chelsea, meanwhile, have been owned by Roman Abramovich since 2003 but his tenure will soon end as the Blues are up for sale. The Russian oligarch has been sanctioned by the government due to his links to Vladimir Putin, who brought war to Eastern Europe by invading Ukraine in February.
The ownership of the two Premier League clubs has raised questions of whether fans should continue to support their teams as usual or take a stand against those who deserve to be condemned.
Shearer discussed the topic at length ahead of Chelsea's FA Cup clash with Middlesbrough on Saturday evening and concluded "it's not the fans' fault at all" who is in charge of their clubs. The Newcastle legend told BBC Sport : "You can still support your club and want your club to win. But, you don't have to agree with your owners and who and what they are.
"You can condemn wars all around the world, we all do. Whether that's in Ukraine now, or Yemen or indeed the human rights issues all around the world, or even what went on in Saudi Arabia last weekend. Fans rarely get a say in who their owners are of their football clubs, that's for the government and governing bodies to decide.
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"My grandad followed Newcastle, my dad does, I do, my son does, his kids will do. No one is going to stop me supporting my club, very much like these Chelsea fans here who have made it here today.
"It's not the fans' fault at all. You can't blame the fans for what’s gone on and what's going on. Chelsea and Newcastle will be around a lot longer than any fan and indeed, any owner."
Abramovich is making progress in his attempts to sell Chelsea with The Raine Group - the bank overseeing the transaction - setting a Friday deadline which has now passed for bids to be submitted from the many interested parties.
