Chelsea will have their appeal against a two-window transfer ban heard by FIFA on April 11, signalling good news for the club after being told the restriction would not be delayed until the proposal had been heard.
The Premier League side were sanctioned in relation to 29 cases where regulations relating to the international transfer and registration of players under the age of 18 were breached.
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Chelsea quickly signalled their intention to appeal but were informed by FIFA the two-window ban would not be delayed while a further ruling was made.
A statement said Chelsea were 'astonished' by FIFA's decision but their appeal will be heard on April 11, the governing body confirmed on Monday.
“We can now confirm that the club lodged an appeal at the FIFA Appeal Committee and a hearing has been scheduled to April 11,” a FIFA spokesperson told Goal .
Should the Stamford Bridge side fail in their appeal, the next step would be to run the case up the ladder to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
If the Blues are unsuccessful on all fronts, however, the future of a number of players would be up in the air.
Eden Hazard is one of the Chelsea players whose future at the club could be affected by the transfer ban.
The Belgium international's contract is set to expire in 2020 and the forward has regularly hinted he would like to join Real Madrid.
Indeed, Goal reported earlier in March that Los Blancos had made their first initial contact with Chelsea over the Belgian's availability , with the Spanish capital side eager to rebuild after failing to fill the void left by Cristiano Ronaldo.
Hazard himself has said that Zinedine Zidane, the current Madrid boss, is his idol, and would likely prove decisive in making up the attacker's mind.
However, defender Andreas Christensen, who is very much on the fringes at Stamford Bridge, has suggested Chelsea will refuse to listen to offers for players at the end of the season because of the ban.
"The situation I have ended up in has been very difficult to accept," Christensen told Danish newspaper Ekstra Blade t .
"The messages we have received are that Chelsea cannot appeal the case and therefore want to keep all the players."