D Day for Chelsea... and Madrid

Although there is no official date to see whether Chelsea will or will not be able to sign anyone, Chelsea did have to submit their appeal by the 5th March, which they did.

The London are currently not allowed to sign anyone, whether permanently or on loan, until January 2020 under the current ban, with the London club given a 2 window transfer ban.

The situation is naturally difficult for Chelsea, making planning for the future difficult, but has also added an extra dimension of difficulty to Real Madrid's pursuit of star winger, Eden Hazard. 

Mateo Kovacic is also relying on the ban being overturned as he wishes to stay at Stamford Bridge, but with no permanent agreement already in place, he would have to return to the Bernabeu.

The Hazard situation is one of concern for Real Madrid who see Hazard as one of their number one transfer targets for the upcoming window. Although Chelsea are able to sell players under the current arrangement, the inability to sign anyone could force Chelsea to keep the Belgian at Stamford Bridge, and risk losing him on either a reduced fee in January or for free in the Summer of 2020.

Chelsea have announced that they intend to hold onto their main men should the ban be upheld, with the likes of Callum Hudson-Odoi and Hazard being told that they cannot leave. Should this be the case, then Real will find it very difficult to sign the Belgian, and may have to look elsewhere.

Chelsea are hoping for an overturned verdict, as has happened in 2014 with Barcelona, who appealed the transfer ban, which allowed them to purchase players in the summer transfer window, meaning the 2 window ban that then ensued was not a problem for the Spanish side. Whilst in 2016, Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid were both punished, before Atletico's ban was overtturned completely and Real's was reduced to just the January window.

Whilst nobody knows what the decision will be regarding the transfer ban, one thing is for sure, Chelsea will not be the only ones keeping an eye on FIFA's verdict.