Fulham will contest Fifa's order to pay full Marlet fee

Fulham will have to pay £3.1m to Lyon for Steve Marlet in the next 30 days or face the wrath of Fifa – with the threat of a transfer embargo, a heavy fine or even a possible points penalty. The club have said that they will appeal.

Football's world governing body yesterday ordered the club to pay up by 28 March. The Fulham chairman, Mohamed Al Fayed, had withheld the cash because he felt the player was too expensive at £11m and claimed that the extra money was going to the agents Pascal and Sébastien Boisseau.

A Fifa spokesman said last night: "The players' status committee felt that, after examining all the files on this case, there was no legitimate reason why Fulham should not pay what they have to pay... the usual sanctions are a ban on international transfers. There could also be fines or even the possibility of a points penalty, although that would be in an extreme case. At the moment we are awaiting Fulham's response."

A Fulham spokesman said: "We are appealing against the verdict. I understand we have 20 days in which to lodge an appeal, which we intend to do."

The West Ham midfielder Steve Lomas is out of the derby with Tottenham Hotspur tomorrow after aggravating an old knee complaint in the relegation struggle at West Bromwich, but his absence will be compensated by Joe Cole coming back from a ban.

Steffen Freund, 33, has criticised the Tottenham manager, Glenn Hoddle, for refusing to consider renewing his contract in the summer.

The Rangers defender, Lorenzo Amoruso, will face a disciplinary hearing next month over allegations he spat on an opponent. The Italian faces a four-match ban if found guilty.

Amoruso was caught on camera spitting on the Ayr striker, James Grady, during Rangers' 1-0 Scottish Cup win at Somerset Park on Saturday. The Ayr player said it had been a deliberate although Amoruso denied this, claiming that Grady had racially abused him.

Manchester City's managing director-development, Chris Bird, has tendered his resignation. Bird was made chief operating officer in 1999 when he became a director of the club. It is believed that his resignation has come about as the result of an internal dispute.

The Football Association has given the go-ahead for Australia to establish a base in London. They will play their first "home" game on English soil on 12 August against Nigeria – with Queens' Park Rangers' Loftus Road ground poised to stage the fixture. Soccer Australia has set a target of six national-team games per year, four of which will be in Europe.