A Picture Paints 130,000 Pounds

Last updated : 14 December 2010 By Ed_ScottishFitba
Marius Niculae 2Inverness have won their appeal against a FIFA verdict which ruled they owed former player Marius Niculae £130,000 in compensation. The FIFA dispute resolution chamber had ruled in Niculae's favour on 17 September, 2009.  However, that decision has been annulled by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, with the player having to pay the costs of the hearing, as well as the club's costs. Niculae had claimed he was entitled to 30% of his £400,000 transfer fee from Inverness to Dinamo Bucharest in August 2008 but Inverness have always argued that he "initiated" his departure. Former Sporting Lisbon forward Niculae spent one season at Inverness, scoring 10 goals in the 2007-08 campaign which earned him a recall to the Romania squad for the 2008 European Championships. German club Kaiserslautern made a formal offer for him which was acceptable to Caley Thistle but he rejected the move in favour of a switch to Bucharest. Inverness say Niculae was pictured on the Dinamo website in a Dinamo shirt, alongside a story saying he had signed a three-year contract, at a stage when Inverness still held his contract and had not agreed to any transfer. Club chairman George Fraser and vice-chairman Graeme Bennett pleaded the club's case at CAS headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, in September.

Fraser said: "
We're obviously delighted with the court's findings as they completely vindicate the club's position. The outcome demonstrates that this club acted fairly and correctly at all times in relation to the Marius Niculae transfer. It's taken a long time and we've had to expend a great deal of time and money in this process but we felt it was necessary to uphold the club's reputation for integrity. We are fully vindicated by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and that is extremely satisfying and we can finally move on. Mr Niculae still has a separate case against the club in Inverness Sheriff Court which is due to be heard early in 2011. We will keep our supporters advised on that. I am sure they are as pleased as we are at overturning the FIFA decision. The club has faced a certain amount of negativity as a result of the original decision but we pursued our appeal vigorously and have won on all counts."
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