FC Barcelona lost a legal battle against Zenit Saint Petersburg this Thursday after the ruling of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) became official. The international body ruled in favor of the Russian team in the case of the transfer of Brazilian winger Malcom. Barça was demanding compensation of 490,000 euros for non-compliance with one of the clauses established in the contract that both clubs signed in 2019.
Barça agreed to sell the Brazilian for 41.5 million euros, half a million more than what the Catalans paid Bordeaux a year earlier for the player. However, the Barça team demanded compensation corresponding to each season that Zenit qualified for the group stage of the Champions League while the winger was in their squad and played at least 50% of the official matches.
Zenit avoided paying more money to Barça for Malcom
The Russian team stopped paying this clause in 2022, due to UEFA's sanction on the clubs of that country as a result of the Russia-Ukraine war. Finally, the TAS agreed with Zenit, which in 2023 closed the sale of Malcom to Al Hilal for 60 'kilos' (€1.5M went to Barça), becoming the most expensive transfer in the history of the Russian league. Previously, the 'blanquiceleste' team had also recorded the most expensive purchase in the country by paying €55M for Hulk to the Shanghai SIPG.
In Arabia, the Brazilian has 2 goals and 3 assists in his first 7 games, maintaining the good level that characterized him during his time in Saint Petersburg. In Barcelona. The one from Sao Paulo only had one season in which he managed to win LaLiga. In total, the winger played 24 games with the Barça shirt (1,068 minutes), adding 4 goals and 2 assists. Barça hoped to obtain an extra 'peak' for the 27-year-old player, but in the end Zenit will be free of any fine linked to his transfer.