West Ham could be barred from paying Nikola Vlasic transfer fee
West Ham United may be facing a complicated situation very soon that could bear big repercussions for their financial future.
According to The Guardian, the Irons are due to pay Russian club CSKA Moscow the next instalment of Nikola Vlasic’s transfer fee in August having signed the Croatian in the summer.
The ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia however threaten to derail the money being transferred with sanctions quickly being slammed upon Russian organisations for their involvement in the conflict.
The Guardian state that they do not know how CSKA Moscow might react to the payment not being received but the matter is in the hands of FIFA rather than the English FA.
Barred from playing?
It is such an unusual scenario to find themselves in but this could have a big impact on the immediate future of the club and especially the player.
FIFA may be within their right to demand that Vlasic doesn’t play next season until the full amount is paid to CSKA Moscow but if English clubs are banned from doing deals with Russians, they won’t have a choice.
It could really be of detriment to the Croatian who was become a very handy player to bring off the bench late in games and attack the tiring full-back.
David Moyes will hope that a resolution can be resolved and there is no threat of losing Vlasic from his already threadbare squad.
The Irons might be best off by paying the rest of the fee as soon as possible before they are trapped in a conundrum but the PR backlash could seriously affect their relationship with media and even some supporters.
That’s a risk they can’t really afford to take.
In other West Ham news, Mark Lawrenson has predicted tonight’s FA Cup game against Southampton.
Be sure to follow West Ham Zone on Facebook for 24/7 updates on the Hammers plus more exclusive interviews with Frank McAvennie.