East Bengal is all set to clear the dues of Johnny Acosta and as soon as the issue is settled, the transfer ban would also be lifted, said the club’s senior official, Debabrata Sarkar.

“We have received Fifa’s letter of transfer ban today (Tuesday) from our investor Shree Cement Limited. The club would act accordingly to get the ban lifted,” Sarkar said.

Fifa had sent a letter to East Bengal on Monday stating that the club was banned from registering any new players in the upcoming transfer window beginning from Wednesday. The ban was imposed as Fifa acted upon a complaint regarding unpaid salary lodged by former East Bengal player Acosta, who was also a member of the Costa Rica World Cup squad in 2014 and 2018.

“Our previous investor Quess Corp activated the force majeure clause and abruptly terminated the contracts of all the players and coaching staff. And now we are facing the consequences. This is the main problem of a one-sided termination clause,” Sarkar said.

“Our present investor Shree Cement Limited made it clear before signing the term sheet that it would not entertain any liabilities,” he added.

In his second stint for East Bengal, Acosta had joined the club in March 2020, going on to play just one game of the I-League that season.

East Bengal is also yet to sign the final agreement with Shree Cement. The term sheet was signed between two parties in September last year.

The club has said it would not sign the final agreement with Shree Cement if “certain terms and conditions” remain unchanged. Shree Cement does not want any deviation from the term sheet.