Arda Turan will have to wait to make his debut with FC Barcelona. Rafinha’s long-term injury opened the possibility for the Turk midfielder to play in the Brazilian’s spot and with that intention the club legal department began working last Monday in the request.

The Spanish FA was very clear to Barça: its regulations allow to register new players in case of long-term injuries, thus there wouldn’t be any issues to sign on Arda Turan because the imposed ban for two consecutive transfers windows ended last September 1st. The Turkish player registration complies with all the requirements stated in the article N° 124 of the federation bylaw.

However, FIFA has not agreed with the club’s arguments and has prohibited the registration. The organization headquartered in Zürich, has considered that the two transfers windows ban finishes on January 4, 2016, and therefore, the club is not able to register any new player until then.

FIFA’s response has not taken Barcelona by surprise and the club intends to appeal the case before the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS), although in the best-case scenario the verdict wouldn’t be known until mid-December.