Mahmoud Abdul-Razeq 'Shikabala' has been cleared by FIFA to play with Zamalek via an interim international clearance, the club's spokesman Khaled Gabr said on Friday. Zamalek had earlier announced the signing of Shikabala from PAOK Saloniki but the Greek side insisted they haven't agreed on letting the Egyptian winger depart. PAOK have also confirmed their intention to hold on to the 21-year-old in an official letter sent to the Egyptian Football Association 'EFA' from its Greek counterpart last month. However, Zamalek took the case to world governing body FIFA and demanded to register Shikabala in their squad, claiming that he cannot leave Egypt due to the military service. "The club's chairman Mamdouh Abbas received a phone call from our Italian lawyer confirming that FIFA told the EFA the player is allowed to play with an interim international clearance," Gabr told FilGoal.com. "FIFA understood Shikabala's situation that he can not travel abroad till he serves the military duty, which will last for three years." Gabr also revealed that FIFA is expected to set an amount of compensation to be paid to PAOK from Zamalek.
