FIFA have reportedly rejected Barcelona’s request to register summer signing Arda Turan in place of the injured Rafinha.
There are provisions that allow players to be registered outside the transfer window in the case of a long-term injury to another player, and it is through that mechanism Barca hoped to be able to include the former Atletico Madrid midfielder.
That’s despite Barca being subject to a transfer embargo, although the club argue that the embargo was lifted when the summer window closed and, as such, they should be allowed to operate normally.
Marca report however that the governing body have rejected that interpretation of the punishment and won’t sanction the registration of Turan, signed from Atletico in the summer.
Barca had wanted to include the Turkey international after Rafinha was ruled out for the duration of the season with an ACL injury.
The Catalans had asked the Spanish Federation, the RFEF, for permission to register Turan for domestic competitions, but if the registration had been granted, he would still have been ineligible for the Champions League this side of Christmas.
Mundo Deportivo has also reported on Wednesday that if the request was rejected, Barca wouldn’t let the issue lie and would cite precedent for players being registered outside the transfer window, as well as legal advice that says the embargo doesn’t extend until January.
