UPDATE — September 3, 2026: Cúcuta Deportivo are now publicly treating Jaime Peralta as a player who has left the first-team group. Head coach Nicolás Chiesa told La Opinión that Peralta is “no longer part of the group” and described the striker as being in the past, while club president Wilmar Sánchez confirmed that Cúcuta are searching for a new No.9 following Peralta’s departure.
At the same time, Colombian reports have linked Peralta with Forte Virtus in the United Arab Emirates, with an agreement reported but not yet officially announced by the clubs. The precise contractual status of Peralta’s exit from Cúcuta remains important because the club had previously disputed his attempt to terminate the agreement with just cause.
What started as a transfer story around Jaime Peralta rapidly developed into a full Colombian transfer telenovela, with formal offers from Rubin Kazan, conflicting valuations, a resignation and a disputed claim of just cause.
Rubin’s interest was concrete, but the story has now moved beyond the original Russian transfer negotiations.
Rubin have made a concrete move
Russian outlet Sport24 reported on August 27 that Rubin Kazan had offered $2 million for Peralta, while Cúcuta wanted $3 million. According to the same report, negotiations were continuing, Rubin remained interested and were preparing an improved proposal.
Sport24 also reported that Rubin had already made a personal offer to the 21-year-old striker: a three-year contract worth around $400,000 per season.
Colombian reporting has given slightly different figures and structures. La Opinión reported that Cúcuta had an offer worth $1.8 million for 80% of Peralta’s rights, with the Colombian club retaining a 20% interest in a future sale. Other Colombian reports have placed an earlier proposal at $1.5 million for 80%.
The exact figures therefore remain disputed, but multiple sources now agree on the important part: Rubin have submitted formal proposals and Cúcuta have rejected at least one of them.
Then Peralta handed in his resignation
The story escalated dramatically on August 28.
La Opinión reported that Peralta had submitted his resignation to Cúcuta after missing two training sessions. The club did not accept the resignation and viewed the situation as a potential attempt to pressure them into approving a transfer.
Peralta’s side has argued that there is just cause to terminate the contract because of alleged failures by the club to meet contractual obligations.
Juan Carlos Pabón, one of Peralta’s lawyers and a former Cúcuta employee, confirmed to La Opinión that the resignation was based on alleged contractual breaches and said the player’s side remained open to negotiation.
Cúcuta strongly disputes that position. The club maintains that it has fulfilled its contractual obligations and, according to Colombian reports, says there are no unpaid wages or salary arrears.
The disagreement could therefore become a legal dispute as well as a transfer negotiation.
A $2m release clause, and another argument
Local reporting has added another unusual element to the story.
Peralta’s contract is reported to contain a $2 million release clause, while his monthly salary has been reported at around five million Colombian pesos.
Pabón has questioned the relationship between the size of the clause and the player’s salary, arguing that the clause should be proportionate to his remuneration.
Cúcuta, meanwhile, has no intention of simply allowing one of its most valuable players to leave without compensation.
The club had reportedly planned to keep Peralta until the end of 2026 before selling him for a fee in the $2 million to $3 million range.
The financial context
The reported salary figures help explain why the Russian opportunity could be so significant for Peralta. His monthly salary at Cúcuta has been reported at around five million Colombian pesos, which at current exchange rates is roughly $1,580 per month, or around $19,000 per year before any bonuses.
Sport24, meanwhile, has reported that Rubin offered Peralta a three-year contract worth around $400,000 per season. If both figures are broadly accurate, the Russian offer would be worth more than 20 times his reported annual base salary in Colombia.
That does not necessarily say anything about Peralta’s attachment to Cúcuta. In the footage used for our scouting video, he can repeatedly be seen applauding and displaying the club badge. But the scale of the financial opportunity provides important context for why the player may be so determined to secure the move, and why the dispute has escalated so sharply.
Free transfer route now being explored
The latest development could completely change the negotiation.
Sport24 now reports that Peralta’s agents and lawyers are actively working on an early termination of his Cúcuta contract. The player’s camp reportedly believes it has grounds to end the agreement and wants Peralta to become a free agent, allowing him to join Rubin Kazan without the Russian club paying a transfer fee.
Sport24 also reports that Peralta’s current contract has less than six months remaining.
That does not mean Peralta is officially a free agent. Cúcuta disputes the basis for the termination and there has been no confirmation that the contract has legally ended or that the player has been cleared to register elsewhere.
But the possibility changes the pressure around the deal considerably. Rubin could either continue negotiating a transfer fee with Cúcuta or wait to see whether Peralta’s camp succeeds in terminating the contract.
The dispute is already affecting Cúcuta on the pitch
Peralta was absent when Cúcuta travelled to face Deportes Tolima on August 31.
Without their leading striker, Cúcuta lost 2-1 and were pulled back into a difficult position in the relegation battle. That makes the timing particularly painful for a club that had just won consecutive matches against Independiente Medellín and Alianza FC, with Peralta scoring the winner in both games.
It also explains why Cúcuta have been reluctant to sell. Peralta has scored eight goals in 18 top-flight appearances in 2026 and has become one of the most important players in their fight to stay in Liga DIMAYOR.
Not Peralta’s first turbulent chapter
The current situation also fits a career that has already contained several abrupt turns.
La Opinión recounts previous short spells with Independiente Medellín and San Lorenzo, as well as disciplinary issues during his development years. Earlier in 2026, Peralta publicly announced that he was leaving Cúcuta because of differences with then-coach Richard Páez and his staff, only to remain at the club after the situation changed.
This time, however, there is a concrete international buyer, significant money on the table and lawyers involved in the attempt to end his contract.
That makes this episode substantially more serious than a routine disagreement between player and club.
Cúcuta now treating Peralta as gone
The situation changed significantly by September 3.
La Opinión reported that Cúcuta are now searching the market for another striker. Head coach Nicolás Chiesa said Peralta is “no longer part of the group” and described him as being in the past, while club president Wilmar Sánchez confirmed that the search for a new No.9 follows Peralta’s departure.
That is a much stronger indication from inside Cúcuta that Peralta’s time with the club is over. It does not, however, by itself settle the contractual dispute or establish the legal basis on which his contract ended.
Reports in Colombia have meanwhile linked Peralta with Forte Virtus in the United Arab Emirates. An agreement has been reported, but there has not yet been an official announcement from the clubs confirming the transfer.
The distinction matters. Peralta’s camp had been seeking to end his Cúcuta contract and make him a free agent, while Cúcuta disputed the claimed grounds for termination. The next key development is therefore not simply whether Rubin return with another offer, but whether Peralta’s contractual exit is formally resolved and his next club is confirmed.
What began with Rubin Kazan’s formal bids has now become a story about Peralta leaving Cúcuta altogether, with the UAE emerging as the reported destination.
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