It’s only right to ban Chelsea now

ChELsEA are in limbo over Eden hazard, with the threat of a transfer ban looming. real Madrid’s interest is genuine and it is suggested Chelsea may sell for £100million — but much depends on the punishment of FIFA. Chelsea fully expected any ban to be delayed until 2020, allowing them to get their house in order. They could sell hazard and finance squad improvements. Losing hazard without being able to strengthen could prove very damaging. Chelsea’s confidence that they would have the summer to manoeuvre was based on the timeline around similar bans for Barcelona, real and Atletico Madrid. FIFA took six months to a year to process their cases, due to appeals. It was while waiting for their punishment to be enforced that Barcelona bought Luis suarez. yet Chelsea’s request for their two-window ban to be frozen pending appeal has been rejected by FIFA, leading to accusations of double standards. not every precedent is good, however. Plainly, FIFA’s previous leniency allowed clubs to play the system. It wasn’t much of a punishment or deterrent at all if a club could do three windows work in one, while making a specious appeal. Barcelona were not allowed to buy players throughout 2015, yet won La Liga in 2014-15 and 2015-16, because they had already prepared. Thomas Bodstrom, a former AIK stockholm defender and once uma Thurman’s lawyer, now handles FIFA’s appeal process. he joined after the spanish clubs were punished and clearly didn’t think much of the process. Chelsea may be horrified, but Bodstrom’s ruling isn’t unfair. It is what happened before his arrival that was a joke.