They call them 'fear clauses'. And they are applied after a negotiation between two clubs for the loan of a player. In its wording it is specified that the club that owns a footballer prevents the club to which he is on loan from being able to field him on the day that both teams face each other. They don't accept it in all competitions. FIFA prohibited them in 2014 and stated this in the Regulations on the Status and Transfers of Players with the following wording: "No club will conclude a contract that allows the opposing club and vice versa or third parties, to assume a position through which they can influence labor matters and transfers related to the independence, politics or performance of the club's teams." Despite the position of international organizations, neither LaLiga nor the RFEF expressly prohibit it and clubs such as Real Madrid They have been applying it since the late nineties.
And Barcelona? Since Abde and Nico were loaned to Osasuna and Valencia last year, the Barcelona club has taken this old control mechanism out of the drawer. And he applies it with almost all of his loans. The last one is Pablo Torre. The Cantabrian midfielder, on loan to Girona until the end of the season, will not be able to play against Barcelona on Sunday in Montjuïc. This is not the case of Eric Garcia.
The transfer of the Martorell central defender was sealed on the last day of the market. Barcelona's rush to get enough salary space to sign João Félix and João Cancelo prevented the draftee from being included in the loan contract. That Eric Garcia took the initiative to leave without it being an express request from Girona also added up. Now Eric Garcia is the undisputed starter. He has started ten League games and was one of the players chosen by Míchel to stay in Girona and avoid the Copa del Rey match against Orihuela. On the other hand, Pablo Torre started for the first time. The Cantabrian completed the 90 minutes of the match, scored a goal and generated the plays for two other goals of the five that Girona scored.
"Pablo was a request of ours and Barça gave us a clause. If we want him to play we must pay," said Míchel. As this newspaper learned, if Girona wants Pablo Torre to play against Barcelona they must pay 300,000 euros. The same figure is the one established for when the second round match is played in Montilivi scheduled for the weekend of May 4-5, 2023.
This price is the same amount that Osasuna and Valencia had to pay if they wanted to field Abde and Nico against Barcelona. "I see the clause well. We don't want it to harm us. It's a positive point and it's a decision we made at the club," said the coach last year when he was asked about Nico and Abde. Of course, before After transferring them, the club renewed them until 2026 and raised their termination clause. Now they both play for Porto and Betis.
"The amount we have to pay for Pablo to play is very high. So it is low for this match," Míchel reported beforehand. The player's situation also adds. In the Girona League, Pablo Torre lives a very different reality from that of the Cup. Aleix Garcia, Yangel Herrera and Iván Martín are indisputable for Míchel in the midfield. If it weren't for the clause, perhaps Yangel Herrera's injury could have given him a chance to participate against Barcelona. Despite this scenario, the footballer is not considering leaving in this winter market. He is happy and feels that he is improving alongside his teammates. Míchel never tires of repeating the following message: "'Pablo, you train very well, don't stop, I won't give you what you deserve, but we will give it to you."
The use of fear clauses is a choice of the clubs and does not apply to all players. For example, Barça did not impose it last year when they loaned Alex Collado to Elche. On the other hand, other entities such as Atlético de Madrid never apply it because they are not supporters and prefer to risk that the loanee could harm them. This is the case of João Félix. The Colchonero forward on loan to Barcelona was able to play last Sunday against his former team in Montjuïc. That day he scored.
