Fifa could prevent Chelsea spending £200m and appointing Zinedine Zidane this summer, according to The Sun on Sunday.
The Sun have recently been claiming that Zidane is interested in taking over from under-pressure head coach Maurizio Sarri at Stamford Bridge but wants money to spend.
It was claimed that Zidane was being lined up to take over and spend £200m on up to four players.
Chelsea were recently hit with a transfer embargo by Fifa for breaching rules over the signing of young players but reports suggested they could still spend this summer while an appeal by the club is heard.
However, it is now suggested this might not be the case – and that Chelsea’s chances of signing players, and therefore bringing in French legend Zidane as boss, could be scuppered.
Thomas Bodstrom, a former Swedish justice minister and ex-footballer, will decide if the ban should be delayed or will start in the summer as planned.
The Sun on Sunday quotes a ‘Fifa insider’ as saying: “The Spanish clubs were allowed to appeal because the statutes about transferring minors were relatively new.
“Now they are established and confirmed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
“It may be the appeal committee thinks the previous cases have established the legitimacy of the statutes that Chelsea have been found guilty of breaking.”