Egyptian international Mohamed Salah has arrived in the Italian capital, but will have to wait for an agreement between Chelsea FC and Fiorentina before completing his move to AS Roma
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The good news for Chelsea FC is that Mohamed Salah is inching closer to a Blues’ exit; the bad – Fiorentina will take legal action should Salah sign for Roma before an agreement for compensation has been reached between the Viola and the Stamford Bridge outfit.
The 23-year-old winger was pictured arriving in Rome, and indeed, his arrival was later confirmed by the Italian media. However, the former Basel man will have to endure his state of limbo a little while longer whilst his parent club tries to negotiate a deal with Fiorentina, who continue to insist that Salah is contracted to them.
Salah must wait a while longer for Roma move
There have been reports regarding a a 2 million loan agreement between Chelsea FC and AS Roma for Salah with a forced purchase clause set at around a 20 million, and the Egyptian’s arrival in the Italian capital suggests an agreement is indeed in place.
According to Italian website calciomercato.com however, Fiorentina are taking a hard line stance with Salah and will not permit him to move to AS Roma before they receive compensation from the Blues for the player.
Fiorentina general manager Andrea Rogg spoke to reporters in Florence regarding the situation, and is quoted by calciomercato.com as saying: “On Salah our position has not changed: we think the player has a contract with Fiorentina and now we will try to find appropriate solutions.
“We are talking especially with Chelsea, not with Rome, and it is obvious that as long as [these talks continue], Salah cannot play . Roma could be a solution, however, as mentioned, we are still discussing with all Chelsea.”
Mohamed Salah spotted in Rome. [@FilGoal] pic.twitter.com/seBZ4XjDre
a Mourinholic (@Mourinholic) July 29, 2015
100+ Roma fans greeted Mohamed Salah at the airport ahead of his move from Chelsea (Fan vids) http://t.co/LClphEIdfw pic.twitter.com/lq9baZs1WD
a 101 Great Goals (@101greatgoals) July 29, 2015
Another Italian media outlet Sport Mediaset claim the compensation Fiorentina want from the Blues could be as high as a 5 million.
Chelsea FC have already moved on
For Blues’ manager Jos Mourinho, Salah is already out of sight and out of mind. The Egyptian winger was replaced with former Fiorentina star Juan Cuadrado in the January transfer window this year, but Chelsea FC now appear to have welcomed back loanees Victor Moses and Bertrand Traor into their first-team squad.
Victor Moses, in particular, has had a very impressive pre-season so far with the Blues, and could well be a back-up to Eden Hazard on the left for Chelsea next season. As far as Mourinho is concerned, Mohamed Salah has already been replaced.
It now simply remains a matter of how quickly the Blues can reach an agreement with the Viola, before a formal announcement is made regarding the transfer to Roma.