Sporting CP have been ordered to pay €12million to investment fund Doyen after losing a lawsuit at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) relating to the transfer of Marcos Rojo to Manchester United.
The Argentina international was sold to the Old Trafford club for €20m ahead of the 2014-15 season after impressing at the World Cup in Brazil.
Sporting were unhappy with how the transfer had materialised and claimed that Doyen had forced through the defender's exit and negotiated with a number of clubs without their permission, which made their contract with the fund – who they have since broken off relations with – invalid.
After helping Sporting to buy Rojo from previous club Spartak Moscow, Doyen were entitled to a portion of his transfer fee, which CAS has ruled is worth just over €12m, with the Portuguese club also having to pay interest on the amount due covering the period of non-payment.
The judgement included current Sporting player Zakaria Labyad, who the club also had relations with Doyen over.
Sporting have confirmed the judgement in a statement to the Portuguese stock market and insisted that they will appeal the verdict, saying they are evaluating all legal options.
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