Middlesbrough have slammed Chelsea's "bizarre" request to play Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final at the Riverside behind closed doors. "Given the reasons for these sanctions, for Chelsea to seek to invoke sporting "integrity" as reason for the game being played behind closed doors is ironic in the extreme. Chelsea Supporters Trust have also called on the club to withdraw its request, saying "playing behind closed doors does not benefit any supporters". They were even willing to give away 4,000 tickets away for free to their fans, but have not heard back from the government. "I don't think Chelsea are expecting Middlesbrough or the FA to agree to play this game behind closed doors.

Source: Sky sports March 16, 2022 01:28 UTC