According to SportsMail, Chelsea are in real danger of not playing in the Premier League and Champions League next season.

The Blues' current operating license ends on May 31.

This means that Stamford Bridge's ongoing sale had to be finished by that date.

Chelsea's ability to compete in the Premier League and UEFA competitions next season could be jeopardized if there are any further delays.

The club's sale is in jeopardy due to concerns from the UK government that the club's owner, Roman Abramovich, is breaking his agreement to write off a £1.6 billion debt.

Towards the end of last week, Chelsea informed Whitehall – and the three remaining interested parties – that they wanted to restructure the way the Premier League club is being sold.

The changes would see Chelsea’s parent company, Fordstam Ltd, transferred to a Jersey-based company, Camberley International Investments, which appears to be linked to Abramovich.

That has raised alarm from key government figures, who are now concerned that permitting the restructuring could see Abramovich financially benefit from the sale of Chelsea.

Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government earlier this year due to his apparent links to Russian president Vladimir Putin, who has led the shocking invasion of Ukraine.

And any scenario that would see Abramovich gain financially from the sale of Chelsea would be in breach of the terms of the Russian sanctions.

Abramovich had previously indicated the net proceeds of the sale would go to the victims of war in the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

The Russian businessman is arguing the sanctions imposed on him will prevent him from writing off Chelsea’s £1.6bn debt.

The development opens the door to significant delays to the process as the government looks to ascertain exactly who will benefit from the sale of the club in the event of the deal being restructured.

Those delays could have serious consequences for Chelsea’s future.