COMMENT: FC Barcelona fans may have had wry smile on their face when a transfer ban was imposed on Real Madrid, but the news could see a flurry of transfer activity in the summer that would affect several major players and see the Blaugrana playing catch-up.
Both Los Merengues and Atlético de Madrid have been sanctioned for breaking FIFA regulations on the international transfer and registration of players under the age of 18 and, for the moment, cannot sign anyone in the summer transfer window or next winter.
The punishment is the same as the one that was handed out to Barça and they, after seeing their ban moved forward by one transfer window after an appeal held it up, have only been allowed to sign players again this month after no new arrivals were permitted during 2015.
Of course, the Madrid clubs' legal teams have swung into action already and believe they have done nothing wrong. The appeal process could ensure that both Madrid and Atlético see their sanctions pushed back to start in the 2017 winter transfer window.
Should that be the case then Florentino Pérez will certainly aim to make the coming summer count with Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea and Chelsea's Eden Hazard high on his priority list.
Amongst the journalists and commentators that cover all of Spain's top three clubs, as the current table stands, the belief is that FIFA will not do a U-turn having handed out the same punishment to Barça.
The Blaugrana's appeal meant that they were able to push back the ban by one transfer window and if the same happens with Los Merengues and Los Colchoneros then the end of the current campaign could be very interesting. While the ban does not prevent either club from selling players, if it was enforced for this summer then Cristiano Ronaldo would most certainly stay put, amid rumours he could join Paris Saint-Germain, until new arrivals could bolster the squad upon his departure.
But, and this is the big thing, if both clubs are allowed to buy in six months' time, then Madrid may well cash in on the Portuguese star and move for Hazard and maybe even stars such as Paul Pogba and Robert Lewandowski. Reporters in the Spanish capital already believe that Bayern Munich and Lewandowski have been approached, while Pogba's signing would be a coup given that Barça are heavily linked to the Juventus midfielder.
De Gea and Manchester United's nerve would most certainly be tested as Madrid would go back and look to tie up a deal that they came so close to completing last summer.
Over at Atlético, coach Diego Simeone, who has far more control over who is signed than almost any other head coach in Spanish football, will also look to sign and sign big - and a new striker could also be on his agenda given the insignificant impact Jackson Martínez has made since arriving from Porto last summer.
In Barcelona, they are still unhappy about their ban, despite it being completed. But fans have been cheered by the fact that, whether rightly or wrongly, while FIFA are going to clamp down on the signing of young players, they are also punishing other clubs and, in particular, the Catalans' arch rivals Real Madrid.
