The chairman of Swedish side IFK Norrkoping, Sakarias Mardh, has claimed that Sead Haksabanovic joining Celtic from Rubin Kazan has made the transfer dispute between the two clubs "difficult".

Russian side Rubin reportedly still owe a percentage of the fee they paid for the Montenegro international to sign him from Norrkoping.

He made the move in 2021 for a reported £5.5million but departed after only a year due to the invasion of Ukraine.

According to reports, the Russian club still owe Norrkoping up to £3.2m and now Mardh has taken the case to FIFA and the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

It is an issue that has been rumbling on since the 23-year-old arrived at Parkhead. Celtic remain materially uninvolved for now - nor is the transfer to Glasgow itself the subject of the complaint.

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Speaking to Swedish outlet NT-sporten, Mardh said: "We continue to seek help from our lawyers to see if it can be resolved. It is up to FIFA and CAS to decide. I have great hope that we will get it right in those instances.

"It is a step in the right direction."

When asked if he was confident of the club winning the case he intimated that Norrkoping have a completely valid argument.

Mardh, who has spoken in the past of his intention to contact Celtic over the 'intricacies' of their Haksabanovic deal, continued: "Absolutely, from our side. We have completed a deal with an agreement that must be honoured. It is probably difficult for the club (Rubin Kazan) as the player is no longer there and joined Celtic, but we have a claim.

"It's not a fun situation for anyone."

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