Cardiff City’s proposed move for Anwar El Ghazi may not be a simple one, with his dispute over pay with Mainz set to rumble on.
That’s according to Kicker, who say the player is taking “a risky path” as he continues his dispute with Mainz while negotiating a deal with Cardiff.
They explain that the dispute between Mainz and El Ghazi has taken a new turn as because he the club have refused to pay his salary since November, he’s now resigned due to late payment and wants to move to Cardiff on a free transfer.
“This is a risky path. If the judges or appeal judges the effectiveness of the immediate termination from November differently, then the effectiveness of the termination that the player gave due to late payment will collapse,” labour law expert Horst Kletke is quoted as saying.
They assume that, in the best-case scenario, FIFA will give the player a provisional permit to play, and he’ll be allowed to join Cardiff. In the worst-case scenario, the state and or federal labour court could overrule an earlier ruling and Mainz can sue for damages.
The case is all about money, with Mainz determined to get a fee that will cover any back pay they’ve given to the player.
El Ghazi would like to move to Cardiff for free and be paid the €1.7m that a Mainz labour court has already awarded him.
The problem is that if Cardiff apply for clearance via FIFA TMS system and Mainz refuse, it could be seen as a sign that they still consider him their player. That would therefore validate his claim over late pay and would ensure big punishments from FIFA and perhaps even transfer bans.
El Ghazi is not prepared to waive his demands for his pay so that’s a potential outcome and given the accusations made by either side, meeting in the middle looks unlikely.
Thus, there may be further twists on the way and headaches for Cardiff too as they become part of what is undeniably a huge mess.
