Why was the transfer of Fernández to Zenit possible? CSKA got into a bad position
Nikita Paglazov July 6, 2023, 15:45 Moscow time
So, did Mario have a contract with the Moscow Club?
The transfer bomb is going off in the RPL right now. Defender Mario Fernández moves to Zenit! The 32-year-old Brazilian with a Russian passport played for CSKA for 10 years and became a club legend. And now, in transit through International, he is moving to Saint Petersburg, to the army’s main rival. How does it work?
Why we won’t see Fernández at CSKA:
Exclusive
The CSKA legend will not return to Russia. Why did the Fernández agreement fail?
Today, July 6, the journalist Alexandre Pretzel published the great news on his social networks. He said that Mario Fernández agreed to move to Zenit. A little later, the details were published by the informant Ivan Karpov. According to him, the 32-year-old defender really agreed with Zenit. CSKA offered Fernandez a salary of 1.5 million euros per season, and Zenit – 2.5 million euros. In addition, those from St. Petersburg will pay the 365 thousand euros required by Internacional for the early termination of the player’s lease in spring 2023. Mario will sign a two-year contract with Zenit. Our sources confirm this information.
Wait, but how does he move to Zenit under a contract with CSKA?
In May 2022, Fernández took a break from his career, leaving CSKA and going to Brazil. Mario attributed it to fatigue and family circumstances. In fact, when Fernández left CSKA, the club reported that the contract was suspended. “Of course, this is a serious loss for the club, but we couldn’t help but respond to Mario’s request. Fernández gave everything for the team for more than 10 years, without skimping on health, he extended the contract twice. We managed to convince Mario not to rush with the final decision on retirement and to agree to a suspension of the contract. I stress that we hope that after a short break, Mario will miss football, our family and return home,” said Roman Babaev, general director of the army team.
Mario Fernandez
former CSKA player
“My contract will be suspended. At the same time, if after a certain time I realize that I still feel the strength to help CSKA, I will return and continue to play for my native club. I have always helped and will help our club in any way I can. I thank God for everything he did for me, taking me to Russia, to CSKA. Our club will always be in my heart!”
Fernández then signed for Internacional. This happened on December 13 – the site of the Brazilian club announced an agreement with CSKA, but there was no talk of a lease. Army representatives did not talk about rent either. In fact, the contract was terminated: in December 2022, Fernández ceased to have any legal relationship with CSKA.
Mario Fernandez
Photo: Artyom Gusev, “Championship”
Mario’s career in the new club did not work out. The defender was only five games, often remaining on the bench. And in April 2023 he initiated the early termination of the contract. After that, there was talk of Fernandez’s return to CSKA. “Just the other day I spoke with Mario. We agreed to contact at the end of the championship, to discuss all the nuances. There are questions with International. There is a high probability that we will see Mario. I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but there are prerequisites. Just as a player,” Babaev said after the Russian Cup final.
However, Fernández never ended up at CSKA. The agent Jorge Machado explained the reasons for the failure of the operation: “The clubs failed to reach an agreement. They no longer negotiate. Most likely, Mario is not in CSKA. According to the “Championship”, the parties did not agree on the issue of compensation. Internacional was supposed to receive €365,000 for the early termination of the contract, which was initiated by the player. The army team hoped to reduce this amount, but the negotiations did not lead to anything. Zenit will be able to pay the amount: either directly to the club, or as a bonus for Mario, who will buy the contract with Internacional himself. CSKA, on the other hand, got into a bad situation: the club doesn’t want to pay much more, and CSKA has no legal influence over Mario.
Follow the development of the story with us:
Live
The CSKA legend returns to Russia. But will Fernández play for Zenit? LIVE
