© REUTERS
Then (for the time being) no transfer for Hakim Ziyech. The Moroccan attacker looked set to leave Chelsea on loan for PSG, but paperwork was delayed.
Vincent Van Genechten
Almost all English and French media agreed: Ziyech would go to Paris for six months, without a purchase option. Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano even tweeted his infamous “Here we go”. Ziyech also boarded a plane to France.
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But then there was a hitch. The papers to officialize the rent had to be in time and that turned out not to be the case. According to a French journalist, Chelsea sent “the wrong documents three times” to London, while L’Equipe reported that the LFP (French Pro League) computer system crashed on deadline day.
Ziyech, meanwhile, was waiting in the PSG offices. Similar to Axel Witsel in 2016. The Red Devil then spent hours in Turin to finally be told that Zenit had not found a replacement and the transfer was cancelled.
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The clubs are now investigating whether a solution is still possible. FIFA has been resolute in enforcing the transfer deadline in the past. David de Gea, for example, saw a transfer from Manchester United to Real Madrid fall through in 2015 because the paperwork was submitted too late. In 2017, things went wrong with the transfer of Yannis Salibur from Guingamp to Hull City for the same reason.
PSG would already appeal in the hope of finalizing the deal.
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