Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa Move Looks Off As French Club Has Promotion Suspended
Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa’s potential move to RC Lens has now been cast further in doubt.
While the French Club would reportedly only have been offering a loan deal due to the size of Mapou’s wages and potential transfer fee, that could all prove academic anyway.
Lens were promoted as Ligue 2 runners-up in May but that promotion has been suspended pending an appeal due in early July. If the appeal isn’t successful then there would obviously no chance of a second division French club being able to afford or attract Mapou.
The problems at the club stem from ‘insufficient financial guarantees’ which have been flagged up by the National Directorate for Management Control (DCNG), which is the financial regulation body of French football.
The insufficient finances revolve around a sum of £8m which owner Hafiz Mammadov has so far failed to transfer into the club accounts. The Lens owner blaming a public holiday in his native Azerbaijan as delaying the payment, something that the DCNG weren’t convinced by.
Hafiz Mammadov appears to be a bit of a character, as well as owning RC Lens he also owns FC Baku back in Azerbaijan, plus Sheffield Wednesday which he recently acquired – though that is still awaiting the ratification of the Football League. In addition, the businessman also owns shares in both Atletico Madrid and FC Porto.
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