Peñarol Struggles to Register Alejo Cruz Amid FIFA Dispute

As reported by FútbolUy, Peñarol is racing against time to register Alejo Cruz, one of the club's five mid-year signings, due to an ongoing legal conflict with Atlético Goianiense over unpaid wages.

Cruz, 24, terminated his contract with the Brazilian side through FIFA’s legal mechanisms and joined Peñarol as a free agent. However, since he is suing his former club, Goianiense has refused to voluntarily release the Transfer Matching System (TMS) document required to finalize his registration.

Peñarol requested the TMS through the Brazilian Football Confederation, but Goianiense declined. The case escalated to FIFA, which issued an ultimatum for the document to be sent. If Goianiense fails to comply within the deadline, FIFA is expected to authorize the transfer between Friday and Monday.

Time is tight: the player must be registered by Thursday to be eligible for Saturday’s clásico. More critically, the deadline to submit Peñarol’s squad list for the Copa Libertadores Round of 16 is this Friday, August 8. The club also has until September 2 to register players for the domestic Clausura tournament.

Cruz, a Peñarol youth product, has already begun training with the team and is awaiting FIFA’s final decision.