THE Saudi Arabian club of Cristiano Ronaldo, Al-Nassr, have been banned from registering new players by FIFA over missed payments on their signing of Ahmed Musa.
Super Eagles captain joined the club from Leicester City in 2018 but apparently the Saudi Pro League club have flouted the terms of agreement over the payment of the transfer fee.
The deal in August 2018 was for €16.5m, but the Saudi club have not fulfilled their end of the bargain and FIFA has had to step in.
Al-Nassr have been handed a FIFA ban on registering new players which is set to last for three consecutive transfer windows, meaning they cannot add new signings to their squad until January 2025.
According to Squawka, the problem with the payments came from the add-ons to the initial transfer fee.
The official document released by FIFA showed that Al-Nassr had agreed to pay Leicester an extra €200,000 for every 20 Saudi Pro League match Musa started for them, up to and including 200 appearances overall.
They also promised €250,000 for every top-three finish and €250,000 for every time they reached the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League while Musa was still at the club.
Added to that, Al-Nassr also agreed to pay Leicester €10,000 for every start the Nigeria international made over the most recently-triggered threshold should he be sold before reaching the next threshold, as well as a sum based on the number of starts already made.
However, Leicester filled a complaint in April 2021 to FIFA requesting €460,000 in missed payments from Al-Nassr for Musa.
The Nigeria forward had been released by the Saudi club in October 2020, after just two years their during which he scored 11 goals in 60 appearances.
Musa started 41 of the 60 games in the Saudi Pro League, earning Leicester €200,000 (for hitting the 40-mark) plus an extra €10,000 for the one appearance over the threshold. Musa also helped Al-Nassr finish second in the Saudi Pro League, triggering the payment of €250,000.
Al-Nassr disputed the complaint at the time, claiming they had until the end of July 2021 to pay according to the original agreements.
A FIFA tribunal in October 2021 then ruled in favour of Leicester City and ordered Al-Nassr to pay the €460,000 within 45 days, or face a three-window transfer ban.
Once again, Al-Nassr appealed the decision, taking it to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, but after almost two years, the punishment is now being enforced.
Al-Nassr have reportedly suggested that the issues with the payments came before the Public Investment Fund bought the club, with plans to settle the debt as soon as possible.
The club recently signed Marcelo Brozovic from Inter Milan but might not be able to register the Croatia midfielder for the new season.
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