Roman Abramovich is pushing ahead with his sale of Chelsea despite the freezing of his assets as part of extensive government sanctions.
The 55-year-old was added to the United Kingdom's sanctioned individuals list on Thursday in a move which threatened to derail his attempts to offload the club.
He announced he was ready to end his 19-year tenure at Stamford Bridge at the start of March amid calls for Russian oligarchs to living abroad to face repercussions in the wake of Vladimir Putin 's invasion of Ukraine.
Sanctions imposed on Abramovich left the Blues doubting whether they would be able to finish the season even though they were issued with a sporting license to continue football-related activities.
However, in a major boost to Chelsea fans, the sale of the club may proceed after a deal was struck with government officials.
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That is according to the Daily Telegraph, which claims Abramovich has instructed The Raine Group - the merchant bank overseeing the sale - to continue the process of finding a buyer and completing a takeover.
The report adds Chelsea and Raine officials have held talks with the government to agree the use of funds raised by the sale, as well as the buyer themselves, will require authorisation from on high.
A deadline of next Tuesday has been set for first bids to be submitted as Abramovich hopes for a swift sale.
There are said to be three American-headed consortiums leading the way in the race to purchase the two-time European champions.
The Todd Boehly-led group are believed to have submitted a bid in the region of £2billion and £2.5billion while the Ricketts family and Woody Johnson are also in the mix.
British tycoon Nick Candy is monitoring the situation and confirmed he is still weighing up making an offer. The property development giant will be present at Stamford Bridge on Sunday for the Premier League clash against Newcastle.
Raine are prepared to allow until the end of the week to weigh up the offers they have received by Tuesday despite the fact Barclays temporarily suspended a number of their credit card accounts on Friday.
The bank are taking a closer look at the sporting license Chelsea have been issued with and the Blues hope the restrictions will be lifted soon.
Meanwhile, a so-called 'domesday' scenario is hanging over Stamford Bridge and could come to pass if Abramovich is unable to sell Chelsea and the sporting license is not amended to allow more favourable terms for the club.
