Minor complications delay Chelsea's Pato signing

UPDATE:

Sources in Brazil claim the "complications" are as follows:

• Alongside the regular buy-option for Chelsea, Corinthians want to impose a clause that would prohibit Pato from playing for any English club other than Chelsea, should Chelsea decide not to take up the option.
• The penalty for breaking this second clause would be €8m-10m, payable to Corinthians should Pato join another English team before the end of 2017 (Pato's contract with Corinthians runs out in December 2016).
• Pato would be free to join non-English clubs like AC Milan.

Basically, Corinthians are trying to protect themselves a bit further without necessarily extending their own deal with Pato.  So Chelsea would have to buy Pato by the end of his loan spell (June 2016) or Pato and his future club, if it's an English one, would have to pay this fee if they sign him on a free transfer in 2017.  Pato's agents are saying that he should accept the terms and then go to courts to challenge it, but it seems that Pato doesn't want that so there's a chance that the deal might fall through.

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Thursday had come and gone without an official announcement from Chelsea regarding the signing of Alexandre Pato.  The 26-year-old Brazilian had traveled to London, taken his medical, passed his medical, and then ... nothing.  Should we be concerned (or hopeful, if you think this signing is a waste of everyone's time and money)?  Probably not.

Sky sources understand Pato underwent his medical last night (Wednesday) but the deal is being held up by complications over his loan fee. Chelsea are likely to have the option to buy at the end of the season, and the deal is still expected to be completed once the issues are ironed out.

-source: Sky Sports Transfer Centre

Not sure exactly what possible "complications" could arise around a loan fee — there either isn't one, like in the case of Falcao, or there is and we pay it once the fee itself is negotiated.  Perhaps other financial issues are at play, or are at play in addition to ongoing negotiations around the loan fee.  Corinthians had been previously concerned with making sure they don't lose Pato without compensation should Chelsea choose to not take up our buy-option in the summer.  Pato's contract with the Brazilian club is set to expire at the end of December, so they could still be working on a possible extension to that as well.

In either case, I don't expect this to hold up things for too long, though it might mean that Pato misses today's registration deadline to be available for Sunday's FA Cup match (though whether he'd be anywhere near in physical condition to play is another story).