Manchester City fear it is now or never in their pursuit of Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez as transfer ban looms
Chilean star has been heavily linked with a move to the Etihad as his current deal with the Gunners expires next summer
MANCHESTER CITY fear it is now or never in their pursuit of Arsenal superstar Alexis Sanchez.
The Etihad club could be banned from making transfers for TWO windows in a row over superkid Benjamin Garre.
Argentina side Velez Sarsfield claim City broke rules to snap up the player when he turned 16.
The case will now be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport after Fifa rejected their complaint.
And, if Velez win, City risk being banned from signing players in January and then next summer.
That could have a huge impact on Pep Guardiola’s hopes of being reunited with his ex-Barcelona star Sanchez.
The Chilean, 28, is out of contract next summer and will threaten to walk away for free in 12 months if the Gunners do not grant him a move to City.
But if this transfer ruling goes against them, the £50million-rated hotshot could find his escape route blocked.
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Velez claim City made their approach to Garre when he was only 15 — and that the transfer should not have been allowed until he was 18.
Fifa waved the deal through last September because Garre holds an Italian passport.
But Velez chief Bernardo Bertelloni said: “City argued there is an exception in Fifa rules as he has a European passport. But the Fifa rule does not say that — it says he can move only within the EU, between EU clubs.”
Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have all been hit with transfer bans in recent years.
CAS will begin to hear the case today, with a verdict not expected for several weeks. That means City’s huge recruitment drive can continue, with boss Guardiola looking to bring in at least five more new faces this summer.
Bernardo Silva and Ederson have already joined from Monaco and Benfica, but Sanchez is seen as their key target.
Meanwhile, Guardiola is confident of landing a second player from the French champions — Benjamin Mendy.
The left-back, 22, has told Monaco he wants to join City in a £40m deal despite interest from Liverpool.
And Guardiola is now hoping Mendy will be on the flight when his squad jet off for their pre-season tour of America in a fortnight.
City also expect to complete the free transfer signing of Dani Alves in the next few days after he quit Juventus.
But they are still refusing to meet Tottenham’s £50m asking price for England right-back Kyle Walker.
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