Cardiff City transfer target Chidera Ejuke has had his CSKA Moscow contract suspended as he seeks a temporary move away from the Russian club in a major boost for the Bluebirds.
FIFA granted Ejuke, 25, a temporary contract freeze last year due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which allowed him to go to Hertha BSC for a season. WalesOnline reported last week the Bluebirds are interested in snapping him up on a similar deal this time around.
However, the red tape which appeared to be a potential stumbling block holding up the deal up looks to have lifted, according to Russian media outlet PFC-CSKA.
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They report that Ejuke, and Arnor Sigurdsson who used the contract loophole to sign for Swedish Norrköping last season, have been granted permission to seek moves away again this term, with their contracts up at the end of the 2023/24 campaign.
The report states: "The Nigerian and Icelander once again took advantage of FIFA's amendment allowing them to unilaterally suspend the agreement until the end of next season.
"Ejuke spent the past season at Hertha Berlin, and Sigurdsson at Swedish Norrköping.
"Recall that only those players who have previously taken advantage of the FIFA amendment and 'frozen' contracts can suspend agreements. PFC CSKA still reserves the right to apply to the courts to protect its interests.
"The contracts of both players with PFC CSKA expire in the summer of 2024."
A deal for Ejuke would represent an exciting move for Erol Bulut’s new-look team. When he made the switch to Russia from Dutch side Heerenveen the Moscow club paid a fee of €12million for him.
He started his career in his homeland before sealing a move to Norwegian football with Valerenga, where Heerenveen spotted his talents. At the time he reportedly chose a move to the Netherlands over Serie A sides Lazio and Roma.
Bulut has already added two new players to his staff, striker Ike Ugbo and centre-back Dimitrios Goutas, and the manager hopes to see more new faces through the door over the coming week.
"We need quality players in the team, players who are free in the market. So I hope in the following days, we can do it quickly," Bulut said after the Bluebirds' 3-1 win over TNS on Tuesday night.
"I hope in the next week we can finalise a few transfers.
"We need to add especially in the attacking area. I said that in the offensive part, we need quality offensive players."
