Fifa is investigating the transfer of midfielder Bruno Fernandes from Portugal’s Sporting Lisbon to Manchester United following a complaint from his former team Sampdoria, soccer’s world governing body has said.
The 25-year-old joined United from Sporting in January for an initial fee of 55 million euros ($59.39 million) and has registered three goals and four assists in nine games.
Sky Sports reported that Italy’s Sampdoria inserted a 10 per cent sell-on clause on any profit Sporting made on Fernandes when they sold him in 2017.
However, the Portuguese club say that clause is null and void as the playmaker signed a fresh deal in June 2018 after terminating the original one.
“We can confirm that on April 3 the Italian club Sampdoria lodged a claim with Fifa against the Portuguese club Sporting Clube de Portugal related to financial obligations set out in the contract corresponding to the transfer of ... Fernandes,” Fifa said in a statement released to British media.
Fernandes was one of a number of players who terminated their contracts at Sporting after a group of some 50 masked men attacked players and staff at the club’s training complex in 2018. He later decided to remain with the club.
Elsewhere, Spain’s women’s soccer season is on the verge of being cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with champions in each tier being declared based on the standings before the campaign was halted, the country’s football federation (RFEF) has said.
Relegation will be scrapped this term as a result of the decision, which must be ratified by the RFEF executive committee yesterday, the governing body added in a statement.
If the proposal gets the green light, Barcelona will be the women’s top-flight champions, with second-placed Atletico Madrid joining them in next season’s Champions League, while basement sides Valencia and Espanyol will avoid being demoted. Two teams will go up from the second-tier, meaning the top-flight will have 18 teams instead of the current 16 next year.
Men’s teams in the top two divisions are returning to training this week in the hope that their seasons can resume in June.
