Player left furious as late transfer to Fulham is being blocked
Sport Witness · Pedro Reinert · 2026-09-01T16:51:13+00:00 · nguồn gốc
Fulham’s late move for Andrei Ratiu is now practically off, with Rayo Vallecano president Raul Martin Presa refusing to budge.
The Cottagers have spent the past few days trying to sign the right-back and Ratiu himself wanted the move. That now looks unlikely to happen, and his reaction towards the Rayo president is said to be particularly strong.
AS journalist Sergio Lopez reports there is a “99%” chance the 28-year-old will stay at the Spanish club.
Fulham have had enough
Ratiu had been hoping to start a new chapter in his career. Lopez says the Romania international wanted a new experience, specifically the chance to play in the Premier League and live in London.
Presa’s position has prevented that so far and there is little expectation of him changing it before the deadline.
Fulham also appear to have reached their limit. Lopez says the Cottagers believe they have already “offered and waited enough” during their attempts to get Ratiu out of Rayo.
That’s significant given the situation earlier on deadline day, when there was still some hope the two clubs could find a solution.
Eduardo Burgos, also reporting for AS, is even more definitive. He says Ratiu will stay at Rayo this season unless there is a “radical turnaround”.
According to the journalist, Presa is blocking the defender’s departure despite Fulham being willing to push the boat out to sign him.
Ratiu anger grows
That has left Ratiu seriously unhappy with his president. Lopez describes his anger with Presa as considerable, going beyond the disappointment which had already surrounded the situation.
The player had made his preference clear. He wanted Fulham and the opportunity to move to England. Now the expectation in Spain is that he will have to remain at Rayo instead.
Fulham, meanwhile, don’t appear minded to keep waiting or improve what they have already put forward. A dramatic late change could still alter things, but AS now consider that highly unlikely.
As things stand, Presa has held firm, Fulham have had enough, and Ratiu looks set to be the unhappy party left behind in Madrid.