New snag stalls Pedro Gonçalves exit from Sporting, Al Ittihad act | OneFootball

Pedro Gonçalves is getting closer and closer to leaving Sporting to join Al Ittihad. The transfer was not completed last week due to bureaucratic issues related to the Saudi Public Investment Fund, but the process is expected to be unblocked in the coming days.

According to the newspaper A Bola, the deal should bring in between €25 million and €30 million for the Lions’ coffers. There is, however, another problem to solve: Al Ittihad currently exceeds the limit of eight foreign players over the age of 21 allowed on the match sheet in the Saudi league.

The club now managed by Jens Wissing has already started making room in the squad. The newspaper ‘Arriyadiyah’ reports that the club terminated the contract of Isaías Rodríguez, an Argentine left-back who only had one year remaining on his deal, but further departures will likely be needed.

Steven Bergwijn and Moussa Diaby are among the main candidates to leave Al Ittihad. The Dutchman has been affected by several fitness problems, while the France international would be interested in a possible return to Bayer Leverkusen.

The Portugal international remains in Lisbon while Sporting and Al Ittihad work out the final details of an operation that is expected to bring an end to his long spell at Alvalade.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.