Fenerbahce Clarify Appiah Situation

Fenerbahce Clarify Appiah Situation
By Nathan L. Redd

Earlier this week it was reported that Fenerbahce had frozen the contract of star midfielder Stephen Appiah. Reports began to circulate that speculated on the definition of such an action, implicating that Fener will cease to pay Appiah during the remainder of the deal.

Fenerbahce issued an official statement clarifying what the "freezing" of Appiah's contract means. In the statement, the club said "Following discussions between Stephen Appiah and club doctors, there is a consensus not to include him in the team for the second half of the season to better enable the process of treating his injury. As a result of his absence, an application has been made to the Turkish Football Association to adjust the quota of foreign players: our club would like to include another foreign player in the team for the six months when Appiah is due to be missing. There is no thought at all of cancelling or annulling the contract of Stephen Appiah." According to UEFA Champions League rules, Appiah can be removed from Fenerbahce's list and replaced by a new name before 1 February.

Fenerbahce is expected to move quickly to sign either a striker or midfielder during the current transfer window. Speculation has now shifted that Brasilian star Maldonado may be in Fener's transfer plans.