Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has called a sports journalist for Catalan-based El Mundo Deportivo a ‘puppet’ of the club’s board.
Marçal Lorente initially tweeted about individuals who were looking to use the Blaugrana as a vehicle to increase their “media, political and economic interests.”
That in itself appears to be a direct on central defender Pique, who has a number of other business interests and was involved in the new format of the Davis Cup tennis competition earlier this season, which some suggested may be a distraction from his football career.
Yesterday, Diario Sport said how Pique and the other three Barcelona captains met the club’s president Josep Maria Bartomeu after reports that the club supremo had hired a third party to attack his ‘opponents’, including Pique and Lionel Messi, online.
The findings were revealed on Monday night, after Barcelona issued a statement denying a report from the radio station earlier in the day claiming the club were paying a third party to damage the reputation of others.
The Catalan club strenuously denied any truth in the initial report, saying that they had neither paid nor promoted anyone to denounce or attack others – who have been opponents to the current board in some form at some point – online.
The former Spain international, through his company Kosmos, have recently taken control of Gimnàstic Manresa who will subsequently become an affiliate of FC Andorra – whom Pique officially bought in January 2019.
That move saw Kosmos take full responsibility for the club’s debt after Andorra’s directors sanctioned the move at a general meeting, with the portfolio of clubs now growing.
Pique’s company Kosmos also have made business moves in tennis, esports, video games, eyeglasses, isotonic drinks and organic hamburgers.