FIFA Done With Chelsea, Manchester United Next.

By: chris | September 4th, 2009

Everybody is well versed on yesterday’s big news of Chelsea’s transfer ban until 2011, a protracted legal battle which has surely only just begun. When it became clear that Gael Kakuta breached a youth contract with a pre-arrangement to a professional contract once he turned 17, all sorts of warning signs began going off. A senior player would have been different, as that’s a no-no, which everybody, or most, know. But a youth contract makes this a much larger deal, setting an incredible precedent and puts not just Chelsea into the spotlight.

And while Chelsea is off pleading their case to CAS, FIFA will soon get some more paperwork on their desk. Next up: Manchester United.

Sir Alex & Co. went into France this summer and poached highly rated defensive midfield phenom Paul Pogba formerly of Ligue 2 side Le Havre. The Frenchmen were, understandably, livid.

“We are still pursuing our case,” Belsoeur said yesterday. “It is a very serious case. We are confident that we’ll win because it is in the best interests not just of our club but of sport. We spend €5m [£4.3m] on our academy every year out of a turnover of €12m. It is a huge investment.

“We do that to give a chance to our players to develop for our first team, not to be an academy for others. What is the point of investing in an academy if the players leave at 16? This is clearly a message from Fifa to protect the education system.”

FIFA has denied receiving any official paperwork as of yet, but it’s well on the way. And Pogba may not be the only one, as last year one particular coup infuriated his former club, Lazio, in the form of Federico Macheda – mostly due to the form of Federico Macheda.

And ManU are adamant they’ve done nothing outside the rules, but then so weren’t Chelsea at the time of Gael’s capture, with FIFA clearly feeling differently.

It’s also important to remember that this is not FIFA, nor is it UEFA, initiating some witch hunt. Lens brought their grievance before FIFA and the world’s governing body determined their punishment from there. Likewise, Le Havre will be the one seeking consequences from the Paul Pogba transfer rather than FIFA turning over English clubs left and right.

The usual suspects can expect overseas clubs too be looking into legal avenues – Arsenal and Real Madrid’s lawyers must be working particularly hard these days – and there could be a domino effect. Or there could be an absurd backlog, as one would imagine plenty of smaller clubs will be looking for their fair share in return. And this means there will be plenty of legal work to be done.

So if you’re an out of work lawyer, FIFA may not be a bad place to look these days.