http://soccernet.espn.go...c=transfers&cc=3888
Mcdonald Mariga's move from Parma to the Premier League is off.

The Kenyan international midfielder was a target of Manchester City, but work permit issues have prevented a deal from being completed.
Parma's general manager Pietro Leonardi had told the Italian media on Monday: "We hope that this case will be resolved. We should have some update from England briefly.''
Mariga joined Parma on a permanent basis in the summer of 2008, after initially moving on loan from Helsingborgs, and the 20-year-old has made nine league appearances for the club this season.
He is under contract with the Serie A outfit until June 2012

work permit problem
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sp.../m/man_city/8491202.stm

I kinda had foreseen that. When there were grapevine rumours about him moving to Portsmouth, the same Permit card was used to forestall the deal. I hope they scrap that rule - i's discriminative. There are many talented players out there whose countries are above that 70 rank. All teams are assembled from indivinduals.

BTW. Is MARIGA STILL 20? I thought he was among the overage players Kenya had featured in an under17 tournament while Balala was a Sports minister?

All said and done we should count it as an positive gesture for a Kenyan to be considered by a Top Premier League side

Getting a work permit for some of the western European countries is hell. It all starts with your employer doing the paperwork and informing the departments of immigration, labor and perhaps employment if the later exists in your district or whatever. Then they have to check whether another person is looking for the same position because by law if you loose your job which you have had continously for a year you will get a fraction of your salary until they find you another one.... What you earn as you look for another job is pegged on a percentage of your last payslip. In the extreme cases where a senior executive falls in the same trap what he earns is based on 2.5 times minimum wage plus allowances based on many children they have in the household.

These are rules regarding all jobs but professional football is in a class of its own plus its own regulatory bodies which determine the rules plus the profiling bit (why would getting a work permit be pegged on where your country ranks in the world of football??, make no mistake this applies to countries outside of the EU and the USA.