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After nearly three months of frenzied activity, screaming headlines and arbitration at the FIFA court, the John Mikel Obi saga appears to have come to an end, bar the shouting.
After nearly three months of frenzied activity, screaming headlines and arbitration at the FIFA court, the John Mikel Obi saga appears to have come to an end, bar the shouting.
Reliable sources from Old Trafford have informed KICK OFF exclusively that Manchester United have given up on getting the player after getting a sneak preview of what FIFA's ruling on the case is expected to be.
It was gathered that United's lawyers have received verbal word from FIFA that the decision will come down to the player himself. 'FIFA will ask Mikel where he wants to play," the sources said. 'And that has been pretty obvious from the beginning. He has said time and again that he wants to play for Chelsea."
Publicly, United will continue to insist that they will fight the case to the very end, in a flailing bid to ward off any suggestions of impropriety on their part. But Old Trafford is prepared to accept the ruling that would leave Mikel free to join Chelsea.
To underline this, the number 21 which was Obi's squad number, has been assigned to South Korean signing Ji Sung Park.
Obi's agent John Shittu is currently in Jos with the boy and his family, and he is taking the news with equanimity.
'I have always insisted that we were in the right all along," Shittu said. 'There is nothing to say. FIFA will make a final decision, but we have nothing to be worried about."
Lyn Director Morgan Andersen said that he will deal with any club that Obi decides to join. 'For us it doesn't matter if Obi wants to play for AC Milan, Juventus, Chelsea or Manchester United. We are prepared to deal with anybody as long as the player is happy to go there."
Whether Chelsea will want to deal with Lyn is another matter entirely, as Stamford Bridge look set to go one step further to contest Lyn's ownership of the player. If it is proved that Lyn ‘acted inappropriately' in respect of the player, FIFA could nullify his contract with the Oslo club, which would then leave him a free agent and clear the way for Chelsea to simply pick him up.
As for Mikel, the youngster has handled himself with a maturity that far outstrips his 18 years. His composure on the pitch as he controlled Nigeria's midfield in their silver-winning effort at the World Youth Championship left little doubt as to his quality and he has carried that composure off the green.
Controversy may have enhanced his star appeal, but the earlier he consolidates it on the pitch the better it will be for all concerned, not least the man in the eye of the storm himself.