The two clubs meet at the Riverside Stadium on Saturday evening with the Blues having been plunged into uncertainty by the sanctions imposed on owner Roman Abramovich following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference on Friday morning, Wilder said: "Somebody comes into your football club, invests hundreds of millions of pounds and turns it into - it had history before - what it has turned into, serial trophy-winning teams, world-class managers, world-class players, world-class infrastructure, a women's team that wins everything, and youth team and an academy that's the best in the country, that wins the Youth Cup.

"It will go up for sale and it will be bought by a billionaire, who will possibly invest more money into it, they'll possibly invest in the stadium, invest in the facilities, so I don't think there's, in the football world, an incredible amount of sympathy over what's happening, really, and I don't think Chelsea supporters would expect that as well.

"It will be a sort period before the takeover and Chelsea will go again and they'll go on from strength to strength."

Chelsea do not need sympathy insists Middlesbrough FC manager Chris Wilder