UNFP director blasts PSG over unfair treatment of Adrien Rabiot
UNFP director Stephane Burchkalter has blasted Paris Saint Germain over their discriminatory treatment of midfielder Adrien Rabiot, claiming that such kind of treatment to footballers is totally unacceptable and can be labelled as harassment.
Rabiot has endured a strained relationship with the Ligue 1 leaders after refusing to sign an extension to his current contract which is set to expire next summer.
In response to Rabiot’s refusal, the club has not only banished him from first-team action but they have also demoted him to train the reserves.
There have been reports claiming that Barcelona have negotiated a pre-contract agreement with the 23-year-old but there hasn’t been any official confirmation just yet.
And the National Professional Footballers’ Union (UNFP) of France has ordered the club to reinstate Rabiot in first-team training within the next 48 hours.
PSG lack the training facilities to allow a second group of players to train apart from the first team and Burchkalter has made it clear that such rules do not apply to clubs who do not have a separate training ground.
“When there is no place to train, which is PSG’s case, the criteria do not apply, it just means another group cannot be formed,” the union’s legal director, Stephane Burchkalter, explained to Goal.
“In the case of Rabiot, who has declined to extend his contract which ends at the end of the season, it is not necessary to even consider if this will be a temporary situation.
“No exceptions have been requested, the forming of a second group is now allowed and he should be automatically returned [to the first team].”
The union official confirmed that PSG have time until Wednesday to welcome Rabiot back into first-team training, claiming that they are likely to face charges if they continue to evade the norms.
“That re-incorporation should be carried out within the next 48 hours,” Burchkalter stated.
“If not, the club will be exposed to sanctions, because from a legal point of view PSG have no right to make Adrien Rabiot train with the reserves, just like they did not have the right with [Hatem] Ben Arfa.
“If it is not done in 48 hours, I don’t want to get ahead of myself but we will be on guard because right now, PSG are trying to buy time and we do not want them to prevail, especially because the end of the transfer window is approaching. The player is in the right condition to train normally and in line with the regulations.
“If the club continues to evade the rules, it could be seen as a discriminatory measure, which could be compared with harassment, and that is wrong, this should be remedied immediately.”
Thomas Tuchel confirmed a few days back that Rabiot will not be considered for selection, despite PSG facing a shortage of options due to the injury to Marco Verratti.
