Barcelona Preparing Summer Shopping Spree after Transfer Ban Suspended by Fifa

Fifa have announced that Barcelona's transfer ban has been suspended, meaning the Catalan giants will be able to sign players after all.

Fifa had hit Barca with a 14-month transfer ban after it ruled the club had fielded 10 ineligible youngsters.

But Barcelona appealed the decision and Fifa has announced the ban will be suspended until the disciplinary process is complete.

While the suspension does not grant Barca impunity, it nonetheless opens the door for the club, who currently sit second in La Liga behind Atlético Madrid, to go on a multi-million euro shopping spree to replace players including defender Carles Puyol and goalkeeper Victor Valdes.

Barca have previously been linked with a number of Premier League stars including David Luiz and Vincent Kompany, and are reportedly ready to battle Liverpool for the signing of Sevilla midfielder Ivan Rakitic.

Two-window ban

Fifa's Disciplinary Committee initially ruled the Catalan giants registered and fielded non- Spanish players between 2009 and 2013 and should not be allowed to participate in the transfer market for two windows.

The affair began at the start of 2013, when Barcelona received a comminique from Fifa in which they prohibited the club from fielding Lee Seung-woo, a player dubbed 'the Korean Messi', whose transfer contravened article 19 of the governing body's code of conduct.

Fifa subsequently banned the Catalan club from fielding five other academy players, all of whose transfers violated the terms of the article.

But the ban has now been kicked down the road after Barca launched a counter-claim to Fifa's Appeal Committee.