The Tale of Adrien Silva: A Player Left in Limbo
If truth be told, this situation is a complete shambles.
The proposed transfer of Adrien Silva from Sporting CP to Leicester City has yet again taken another turn.
However this time, it looks as if Leicester fans like myself won’t be seeing the Portuguese international in a Foxes shirt until at least January.
Oh, what a time to be alive…
It all started last season, where Sporting stood firm after receiving varying levels of interest from three Premier League sides.
Now, of course, Leicester were one of the teams interested in the 28-year old.
Leicester’s bid of €28 million was turned down on Transfer Deadline Day, with the media reporting that a deal still looked likely later on down the line, with the player seemingly ‘interested’ in a switch to the King Power Stadium.
Little did we know as Leicester fans, this transfer would rumble on and on, up until today.
Transfer Deadline Day 2017
BREAKING NEWS
Leicester City agree £22m deal with Sporting CP to sign midfielder Adrien Silva.
I was ecstatic. Over the moon. Finally, this deal looks done and dusted. All we need now is the paperwork to go thr- oh, wait…
After a frantic dash from Player Liaison Officer Jon Sanders across Belvoir Drive car park, which I presume we all saw on Sky Sports News, it looked as if we’d just about get the paperwork sent off in time.
And so, the waiting game for confirmation commenced for all Leicester fans.
Frantically scrolling through Twitter, using the hashtag ‘#lcfc’, finding out what on earth is going on. Nothing from the club, nothing from the reporter at the training ground, nothing.
Just Leicester fans feeling the same emotions as me; confusion, anger, irritable to name a few.
BREAKING NEWS
Sky Sources: Leicester’s deal for Adrien Silva done subject to International Clearance.
Hmm…right, okay. He’s ours.
‘It is understood, Leicester officials are confident the paperwork was handled correctly and the agreed deadlines were met.’
(Credit: Sky Sports)
Mr Silva had said his goodbyes to his old teammates, coaches and fans – surely this was it now.
Even Sporting’s Official Club Statement was to the point:
“In view of the recent news, it is further informed and clarified that,
the definitive transfer of the sports and economic rights of the professional football player Adrien Silva to Leicester FC, is concluded.”
But unfortunately, as ever with Leicester City, nothing is ever this straightforward.
Not long after Deadline Day, Leicester fans got the news they so desperately didn’t want to hear.
The news that not only did we let our best centre midfielder leave for champions Chelsea, but now the deal for Silva is in doubt.
The Leicester Mercury stated, and I quote:
‘It is believed Leicester filed their final paperwork to Fifa with seconds to spare, but it arrived at football’s governing body 14 seconds after the deadline.’
This meant that FIFA had no choice but to reject the move.
You have to feel sorry for the lad. He’d been stuck in limbo in a hotel room, not knowing whether he was coming or going!
Along with the FA’s guidance and with representatives from Sporting CP, Leicester appealed the decision.
However, typically of the world football governing body, they stuck to type and rejected the appeal from the club.
A spokesman for FIFA said:
“The decision of the Single Judge of the Players’ Status Committee … is rejected”. (Credit: Sky Sports)
Options
The only two options Leicester have at this stage are as follows:
– They accept the decision, but Adrien Silva is unable to play until January (remember he is technically a Leicester player).
– They appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, AKA ‘CAS’, and take the case further.
The problem Leicester have is, with an already tarnished reputation because of this mess of a situation, if they were to go with option one, this whole process would have been looked at as a waste of time.
Yet, if they choose option number two, CAS could, of course, overturn FIFA’s ruling, meaning he is free to join.
Moreover, if CAS reject this next appeal, Leicester become the laughing stock of English football with regards to transfer activity, if they haven’t already!
Questions need to be answered very quickly from the people that matter at the club, and let’s all pray that this issue can be resolved sooner rather than later.
An official club statement from Leicester City:
“We cannot hide our disappointment or that of the player at the short-term consequences of the decision.
“We maintain, and have made strong representations to FIFA’s Players’ Status Committee,
that all parties involved in Adrien’s transfer fulfilled their obligations,
consistent with FIFA regulations and within the required timeframe.
The Club is reserving its position in relation to whether it will decide to appeal the decision,
to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.“The Club and its staff will continue to work with Adrien,
to hopefully minimise the impact that missing a substantial period of the season may have on the player,
while continuing to prepare the squad for the games ahead.”ENDS