Chelsea
say FIFA treated them "differently" to Premier League rivals Manchester City
after being cleared to sign players in January as the Court of Arbitration
for Sport reduced their transfer ban.
CAS reduced the ban by half after finding Chelsea guilty of breaching two of
its regulations on player transfers, specifically regarding bringing in U18s
and 'third-party influence' but "for a significantly smaller number of
players (about 1/3 of the violations found by FIFA)".
FIFA handed down a two-window transfer ban to Chelsea in February of this
year and rejected Chelsea's appeal against the punishment in April.
Chelsea served the first window of their ban in the summer but made a
further appeal at the CAS last month, who accepted submissions about the
case from the club as well as FIFA.
Premier League champions Manchester City avoided a transfer ban and were
fined £315,000 in August for breaches relating to international transfers
and registration of players under the age of 18, with FIFA citing "specific
circumstances" and "the club's cooperation in clarifying the relevant facts"
as factors in the less severe punishment.
A Chelsea statement said: "The approach taken by FIFA to this case has been
deeply unsatisfactory, not least as FIFA chose to treat Chelsea entirely
differently to Manchester City for reasons that make absolutely no sense to
Chelsea.
"Chelsea respects the importance of the work undertaken by FIFA in relation
to the protection of minors and has fully cooperated with FIFA throughout
its investigation.
"However, if FIFA continues to impose inconsistent and unequal sanctions on
clubs then it will not only undermine the very purpose of the regulations,
but it will also bring into doubt the game's confidence in FIFA being able
to appropriately regulate this important area.
Despite the transfer ban, Mateo Kovacic joined the club from Real Madrid for
£40m because of a loophole in FIFA's regulations which allowed the transfer
as Chelsea already held his registration after his season-long loan from the
previous season.
Despite also losing star player Eden Hazard in the summer, Chelsea started
the season well under new head coach Frank Lampard, who has used the
punishment to help bring through young players.
They sit in fourth in the Premier League table after 15 games and will be
boosted by their ability to strengthen their squad in January.
Chelsea's fine has also been halved from £460,000 to £230,000.
Lampard 'happy' with squad but considering
options
Speaking ahead of Chelsea's Premier League clash at Everton, Lampard says
the now the club have the chance to sign players again, they must get it
right.
"It's a positive outcome for us. The club was working towards a positive
outcome for us. It allows us to look at the market going forward," said
Lampard.
"I am pleased on a football level. It's obviously a good thing. It wasn't
anything to discuss [with the club] at length until we knew the decision."
When asked if Jadon Sancho, Ben Chilwell and Wilfried Zaha were targets he
added, "I am not going to sit here and go down too many lines. I am happy
with the squad. I am just considering the squad we have got now and in
January we can consider our options.
"The fact that people have given us a lot of credit is because people
expected less from us. So the players deserve credit. But I want more.
"Clubs below us were spending £100m-£150m and we didn't have that chance. We
lost Eden Hazard and lost two number nines but the picture has now changed
and we need to get it right moving forward."
Analysis: Who could Chelsea sign?
Chelsea are free to sign players in January after successfully appealing
their transfer ban, but which areas of the squad need strengthening? And
which players could Frank Lampard target?
From a Leicester star who could be the solution to their left-back problem
to a two big-name attackers who have emerged as potential additions to their
forward line, we take a look at what to expect.
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