Adrien Silva can only watch new Leicester team-mates through window
Fifa rules allow the 28-year-old to train at Leicester’s Belvoir Drive Training complex every day - but not with team-mates
CRAIG SHAKESPEARE says Adrien Silva’s stalled £25million move from Sporting Lisbon has become a real pane for the Portuguese midfielder.
Bizarrely, strict Fifa rules allow the 28-year-old to train at Leicester’s Belvoir Drive Training complex every day.
But the frustrated midfielder can only watch his new mates going through their paces through a WINDOW.
Almost a month has passed since the Foxes failed to complete the Silva’s proposed move from Sporting Lisbon on deadline day... by 14 seconds.
In the meantime Shakespeare admits Silva - who was omitted from Portugal’s World Cup squad for their final qualifying ties against Switzerland and Andorra - is like a kid with a ball, but no mates to play with.
Shakey revealed: “He is okay but he has his little moments of course.
“Coach can I come outside?” he asks. ‘Just look through the window,’ I reply.
“Being able to train (in the gym) is keeping him in and around it. But we also know that legally we have to do what is right as well.”
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Leicester have taken a softly, softly approach to the delicate red-tape wrangle in the hope that Fifa will eventually show common sense to allow the move to go through as Sporting, the player and both relevant FA’s want the deal concluded.
However if Fifa refuse to budge and confirm Leicester have no chance of obtaining the International Transfer Certificate they require to play Silva, the club have the option of appealing Fifa’s decision to CAS (The Court of Arbitration for Sport).
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Until then, Shakspeare must bite his lip and hope common sense prevails!
“I am a bit like everyone else and reading the FA back us and we are letting the process take its’ course,” he groaned. “But every day I ask how long is the process? No one can give me an answer because it is such a unique situation.
“I want the player and I am asking can he train? Is it 24 hours, a week, two weeks?
“So my frustration is the same as everyone else’s, the supporters, the club and the player. We are waiting to be told and so far I have no indication of a time frame.
“We were waiting to see if he was called up by Portugal and how that went – but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Ideally I don’t want his fitness levels to drop too far down.”
One signing which does seem to be going much more smoothly is Demarai Gray’s contract extension.
Shakespeare added: “I am hopeful that will be concluded very soon – in the next 24 to 48 hours.
“Demarai is part of this club’s future. We want to keep our best players.”
