Adrien Silva won’t be able to play for Leicester until JANUARY after Fifa reject his registration despite £22m fee being agreed with Sporting Lisbon
A spokesperson for the Foxes confirmed that they are working with Adrien and Sporting to overcome 'issues with the player's registration'
LEICESTER have been dealt a huge blow with the news that new signing Adrien Silva won't be able to play for them until January.
According to reports coming out of Portugal, Fifa has rejected the Foxes' registration of the midfielder despite a fee agreed between the Premier League club and Sporting Lisbon.
And a spokesperson for Leicester confirmed the news that will leave fans fearing the worst.
Speaking to the BBC, a club rep said: "We are working with Adrien and Sporting Clube de Portugal to overcome some issues relating to the player's registration and exploring all options to find a resolution."
Leicester were given special dispensation to complete the late transfer having just sold Danny Drinkwater to Chelsea.
But the issue relates to the registering of Silva to the squad and not the transfer dealings between the two clubs.
Portuguese news-site Record states that "despite the deliberations of Fifa, the transfer of Adrien is not at risk".
Another respected Portuguese news outlet, A Bola, also reports that "Fifa have not accepted Adrien Silva's registration with Leicester".
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However the Foxes are facing up to the prospect of not being allowed to play the 28-year-old central midfielder until January, when squad registration can be altered when the window re-opens.
This could leave a huge hole in Leicester's midfield, with Wilfred Ndidi yet to convince that he can replace N'Golo Kante, and Drinkwater having moved to pastures new at Stamford Bridge.
It will also mean Leicester could be faced with paying the wages of an international midfielder who isn't even allowed to play.
Silva has played the majority of his career with the Portuguese outfit after making his first-team debut at the age of 18.
After playing an integral role for the Portugal international side during their triumphant Euro 2016 win, the central midfielder attracted a lot of outsider interest.
Leicester City endured a tough summer in the transfer market, but boss Craig Shakespeare has managed to bring in a new number of new faces.
Kelechi Iheanacho from Manchester City marks the record signing of the summer, which set Leicester City back £24.9m.
However, the Foxes have also offloaded a number of players – including Drinkwater, Tom Lawrence, Ron-Robert Zieler, Bartosz Kapustka and Nampalys Mendy.