The Curious Case of Yannick Djalo

The Court of Arbitration for Sport has backed FIFA's decision that the transfer of Portuguese forward Yannick Djalo from Sporting to Nice is invalid, ending the French club's hopes of overturning it.

Nice, despite stating their disappointment, now feel that there is no alternative but for the player to return to Lisbon.

They had agreed a 4.5 million euro deal to purchase Djalo but the necessary documents were not processed in time, the last of these arriving to the French football association shortly after the summer transfer window officially closed.

‘We have been left disappointed,’ Nice chairman Jean-Pierre Riviere told L'Equipe.

‘It is a shame for both us and him that a deal has not happened.

‘We wanted him now and nothing has been set up for the future. There is no agreement to sign him during the next transfer window.’

However, Sporting allege that their association with the player ended when they agreed to sell him. The problem, in their opinion, lies with Nice and any dispute between them and the authorities is no concern of Sporting's.

Sporting claim that, after agreeing to sell Djalo to Nice, an agreement was made with the player to rescind his Sporting contract. This took place on the evening of 30 August and Yannick spent the following day, deadline day, in France.

‘He is no longer a Sporting player,’ a club official told Portuguese newspaper Record.

‘The Yannick problem is now Nice's concern, so it's up to them to sort it. We signed a transfer agreement with Nice and we hope it will be respected.’

On the other hand, on the club’s official website, Nice general manager Julien Fournier said that since ‘there is no registration there is no deal’.

Sporting communications director Pedro Sousa’s response to this was that ‘the responsibility is Nice’s, Sporting has nothing to do with the delay of the registration’.  

Seemingly there is an impasse. Djalo cannot join Nice now, nor do they seem overtly keen on taking him in January either. Meanwhile Sporting are unwilling to take him back. The 25 year old is thus placed in some kind of footballing limbo.

It’s a bizarre situation but one that hopefully, for the sake of the player, can be resolved sooner rather than later – although it has already dragged on for nearly two months. It may take another intervention from FIFA to clarify where exactly the player should be.