Anwar El Ghazi is nearing a move to Cardiff City after leaving Mainz last year.
The German club owed the 29-year-old £1.4million in salary and bonuses that they would have had to pay in full by midnight July 30 in order to retain his services.
Sources with knowledge of the situation — speaking on the condition of anonymity — have told The Athletic this was not paid, allowing El Ghazi to sign for Cardiff as a free agent.
The forward, who attracted interest from three Championship clubs, has chosen to join the Welsh side on a one-year contract. Sources added that El Ghazi will travel to Cardiff this week for a medical, and a deal could be officially announced in early August. Mainz and Cardiff declined to comment when approached by The Athletic.
El Ghazi’s potential move follows a German court ruling earlier this month that he was unfairly dismissed by Mainz after a social media post about the Israel-Gaza war.
Judge Chowdury at Mainz Labour Court ordered the club to pay El Ghazi €1.7m (£1.4m) back in salary and to allow him to return to work, as he has one year remaining on his contract. The two parties have been working on a settlement agreement for his release.
The judge had previously proposed a settlement on June 21, which Mainz rejected in favour of a court verdict.
El Ghazi had appeared in court (Arne Dedert/picture alliance via Getty Images)
El Ghazi’s contract was terminated on November 3, 2023, following an Instagram post expressing support for Palestinians. Mainz initially suspended El Ghazi in October, stating he had taken an “unacceptable” stance on the war.
Although his suspension was lifted a few days later after he showed “remorse,” he later stated on social media that he did not “regret” his post and stood for “humanity.” Mainz subsequently said in a short post on social media that they “fail to understand and are surprised by El Ghazi’s statement on his social media channels relating to the club”. They then terminated his contract two days later.
El Ghazi’s initial post, which has since been deleted, included the phrase “from the river to the sea,” which can be viewed as incitement for the destruction of Israel and is potentially criminally prosecutable in Germany. The American Jewish Committee defines the phrase as antisemitic as it calls for the elimination of the Jewish state.
The Netherlands international later attempted to clarify his post, stating that he stood “for peace above everything” and called for “more empathy” and a deeper understanding of the conflict’s history.
El Ghazi joined Mainz from PSV Eindhoven in September 2023 and signed a two-year contract. He made three substitute appearances in the Bundesliga before his exit.
(Top photo: Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
