Turkey's Fener wants TFF to pay Rustu

Fenerbahce wants the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) to pay goalkeeper Rustu Recber's wages until he recovers from an injury, Turkish Daily News reported on Monday.

Rustu left the field in the ninth minute of the Italy-Turkey friendly on Nov. 15 last year due to a ruptured cruciate ligament and is expected to be out until the end of April.

Fenerbahce Vice Chairman sekip Mosturoglu said they had applied to the federation right after the match. "We asked the TFF to pay for Rustu's wages as stated in his contract for the period he will not be able to play for Fenerbahce. We have a right to do that. As I recall, Galatasaray did the same when Hakan Unsal got injured in a national match."

TFF Vice Chairman Kemal Kapulluoglu confirmed Fenerbahce's application, adding that they would discuss it at a board meeting.

"The issue is now been reviewed by our legal committee. It is a justifiable demand, and if the board agrees we will pay Rustu's wages until he again plays for Fenerbahce."

This is not the first time a club has made such a demand from the federation. Earlier this year Belgian first division side Charleroi brought a case against FIFA because one of its players, Abdelmajid Oulmers, returned injured from an international friendly for Morocco against Burkina Faso in November 2004.

Oulmers was unable to play for his side for more than 200 days, and Charleroi argued that his absence from the pitch affected its final league and cup standings. The case pitched FIFA against the G14 group of 18 major European clubs, which threw its support behind Charleroi.

Source: Xinhua