The Spanish FA reportedly rejected Leganes’ request to sign a striker after they lost Martin Braithwaite to Barcelona.

Barca were given dispensation to sign a player following the injury to Ousmane Dembele.

AFP or licensors 1 Former Middlesbrough striker Martin Braithwaite has joined Barcelona

Under current rules, clubs can apply to sign a player outside of the transfer window if they have someone out injured for five or more months.

The Catalan club then activated the £16million buyout clause of Braithwaite and has now left Leganes short of attacking options.

Cadena Cope report that the LaLiga club appealed to the Spanish FA to try and make an emergency signing but it was rejected because dispensation is only given to long-term injuries.

Leganes director general Martín Ortega said: “We find ourselves in a hugely damaging situation. We can’t understand the current rules that mean a club, suffering a long-term injury, can unilaterally carry out an operation and pass the problem onto another club.

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“We would understand this rule applying if there were a mutual agreement between clubs, but the current rules go against equality between clubs. We’ll do whatever it takes in a situation that causes irreparable harm.

“We believe this rule is unfair, and Barcelona have benefited. The injured party is Leganés. Barça have acted correctly. They told us their intentions on Monday and the only way was to pay the clause. We won’t bear a grudge because they’ve made use of a possibility in the rules.

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“The player has been a gentleman and a professional. Yesterday he trained completely normally, knowing he could get injured. We’d like to thank him, his sporting performance has been immense.”

Leganes placed no blame on Barcelona but have been left in a frustrating situation as they fight for survival in LaLiga.

Not only have they lost Braithwaite without the possibility of signing a replacement, they were already having to cope without their former player Youssef En-Nesyri, who was snapped up by Sevilla in January.