FIFA has taken a decision in respect to Chelsea's claims for damages against Romanian striker Adrian Mutu but has yet to release it to the sides involved, soccer's world governing body said on Friday.
Media reported that FIFA decided the Fiorentina's striker must pay 12 million euros ($18.40 million) in damages to Chelsea after his contract was terminated by the London club in October 2004 as a result of the player's positive test for cocaine. "The decision on the dispute at stake has been reached by the Dispute Resolution Chamber and is currently being processed. The decision will be notified to the parties concerned in due course," FIFA told Reuters in an email.
In Zurich, Mutu's Swiss lawyer Gianpaolo Monteneri told Reuters by telephone: "We will take a decision on how to act (to defend our client) as soon as a final decision by FIFA is available." Local media reported Monteneri visited Romania's EURO 2008 training base in St Gallen to discuss the decision with Mutu.
Chelsea spokesman Simon Greenberg told Reuters it was too early to comment. "As far as I know we have not had official confirmation from FIFA yet. Until we have the official decision we cannot say anything officially." Asked how big were Chelsea financial claims, Greenberg said: "We never asked for a sum. The only thing we ever said publicly was how much in our accounts Mutu was worth. When Mutu left, obviously he had a value in our account. "That value was 13 million pounds ($25.28 million) but when we made our case to FIFA we did not ask for a specific amount."