Barcelona have condemned an "erroneous" report that revealed the salaries of star players Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, among others.
Journalist Lluis Canut claimed Thursday that Pique was earning almost 30 million gross annually from Barca, with Sergio Busquets pocketing 23m and Jordi Alba 20m. The amounts in all three cases represented much more than had previously been thought.
- ESPN+ viewers' guide: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, FA Cup, more
- Notebook: The inside stories in football
Canut also said that the wage cuts accepted by the three players last summer to help the club through a difficult financial period were merely deferrals and not reductions at all.
"In relation to comments made by Lluis Canut on TV3, Barcelona would like to clarify the following," the club said in a statement on Friday.
"1. The information on the salaries of certain first-team players has not, in any case, been provided by the club and the origin [of any leak] is unknown.
"2. In any case, the amounts referred to in the information are erroneous and do not conform to reality. Furthermore, in the case of the first three players referred to [Pique, Busquets and Alba], it gives fixed amounts which, as the sums involved are based on variables, will possibly never be reached.
"3. It is also false that the aforementioned players have only deferred their salary. Pique, Busquets and Alba gave up part of their salary when they signed contract renewals last summer.
"We consider it...
In a desperate attempt to sway an election just days before voters head to the polls, DSA-backed candidate Jibreel Jalloh and his supporters have chosen to spread false allegations involving my fa...