Report: Barcelona to make official request to register Arda Turan

Last week, former presidential candidate Toni Freixa brought to light one fact that could change Barcelona's season: the fact that the club could request the registration of new signing Arda Turan before the month of January, an exceptional case due to the season-ending injury to Rafinha Alcântara.

"The club may register a substitute for Rafinha. Article 124.3 of Regulation RFEF is very clear and FIFA has no competition here. In this case it would be the RFEF who is granting the license to the new player or deny it. If denied it can be appealed but never to FIFA. Therefore there is no reason not to start the process. There's no need to consult anything, we must have clear ideas and act. The team is in need."

Source: Toni Freixa/Twitter

Now, it seems like Barça will take that advice seriously. The Spanish Federation regulation does grant the club a special registration after the transfer window if there is a grave injury to a current squad member, which is exactly the case. That's why the Blaugrana are set to make an official request to the RFEF to register Arda Turan immediately, according to Catalunya Radio; the club will also consult FIFA in order to get approval, which is the hardest part of the process.

Barça is no longer transfer banned, which means FIFA has no reason to deny the request. But it's FIFA, and they've dropped the hammer hard on the Catalan club, so don't get too optimistic.

But anything could happen here. So you're telling me there's a chance?