CSKA Moscow have confirmed striker Chidera Ejuke and midfielder Arnor Sigurdsson have suspended their contracts and will not be part of their squad for the new Russian Premier League campaign.
The 24-year-old Ejuke, who turns out for Nigeria’s Super Eagles, used the temporary employment rules approved by the world governing body Fifa to terminate his contract.
“Two PFC CSKA foreign footballers will play for other teams in the 2022-23 season,” the club confirmed on their official website. “Striker Chidera Ejuke and midfielder Arnor Sigurdsson have used the temporary employment rules, which were approved by The Bureau of the Fifa Council, and suspended their respective deals with PFC CSKA until June 30, 2023.”
The Russian club has, however, confirmed they were against the decision taken by the player and vowed to file a lawsuit to defend the club’s interest against Fifa’s decision.
“PFC CSKA regrets the players’ decision, which was taken despite the club’s effort and their contract duties,” the statement continued adding: “As was announced earlier, PFC CSKA plans to fill in lawsuits to defend its interests against Fifa’s decision, which we consider discriminatory and contrary to the statutes of that organisation.”
On June 21, Fifa announced they had extended until June 2023 the possibility for foreign players and coaches based in Ukraine and Russia to unilaterally suspend their contracts and move to another club.
In a statement, Fifa said: “The Bureau of the Fifa Council has decided to extend the temporary employment rules established in the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players [RSTP] with the aim of effectively assisting players, clubs, and coaches impacted by the war in Ukraine.
“The decision follows changes made to the transfer rules in March following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Should clubs affiliated with the Ukrainian Association of Football [UAF] or the Football Union of Russia [FUR] not reach a mutual agreement with their respective foreign players and coaches before or on 30 June 2022... these players and coaches will have the right to suspend their employment contracts with their clubs until 30 June 2023.”
In March 2017, Ejuke signed a three-year contract with Eliteserien side Valerenga and in July 2019, he moved to the Netherlands to play for SC Heerenveen, ignoring interest from clubs such as Besiktas JK and Lazio.
On August 28, 2020, CSKA Moscow announced the signing of Ejuke from Heerenveen on a four-year contract and he scored his first goal for the Army Men on September 20, 2020, in a 3-1 derby win over Spartak Moscow.
