Now that the January transfer market is open, clubs in the nation and the rest of Europe should concentrate on bolstering their rosters.
After Luis Palma moved to Celtic Park in 2023, one of his previous clubs feels like they should be paid.
Although Celtic hasn’t added any new players this month, they are still said to be linked to a number of players as they prepare to return from the winter break and take on Buckie Thistle of the Highland League on Saturday, January 21. But according to The Scottish Sun, one of their previous transfers seems to have sparked a dispute between two clubs, with FIFA allegedly planning to get involved.
Celtic signed winger Luis Palma in August 2023 from Greek club Aris with the fee reported to be £.3.5 million. However, that figure is being disputed by Honduran club Vida, Palma’s first team, who actually believe the figure was £4.1 million and that they are due £500,000 from a sell on clause that has allegedly not been paid.
Vida appear to need the cash desperately and reportedly can not pay their current players until they receive it. Their club president is adamant they have not been paid what they are due and that is why FIFA are now set to intervene.
Luis Cruz, Vida president, said: “The first transfer for Luis Palma was for £200,000 and we built in a 35 per-cent sell-on fee. But we did not receive any payment after his transfer to Celtic.
“Celtic bought Luis for 4.8 million Euros [£4.1m], we know that. I told Luis when he was leaving us not to go to the club in Greece and I had arranged a transfer to a club in Portugal instead, but his agent insisted he go to Aris.
“They haven’t paid us the full amount from the first transfer either and the sell-on fee which has hurt us financially a great deal. In total, they owe us around £50,000 from the original transfer and the sell-on.”
