Team captain Lionel Messi says he is tired of being blamed for problems at FC Barcelona.
The Argentine’s comments came after he was accused by Antoine Griezmann’s former agent of making life difficult for the French striker at the La Liga club.
Eric Olhats had accused Messi of having too much control at the club, saying his “reign of terror” had made life difficult for Griezmann to adapt since his arrival in 2019.
Messi returned to FC Barcelona from international duty with Argentina on Wednesday when he was accosted by reporters at the airport.
“The truth is that I’m a little tired of always being the problem for everything at the club,” he was quoted as saying by Spanish media.
“On top of that, after a 15-hour flight, I had the tax authorities waiting for me. It’s madness”.
Messi tried to activate a disputed clause to leave FC Barcelona for free in the off-season.
But he eventually decided to stay as he did not want to face a legal battle with the club.
FC Barcelona have been in turmoil since Bayern Munich humiliated the Spanish side 8-2 in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals last season.
Club president Josep Maria Bartomeu resigned last month ahead of a vote of no confidence.
Messi has also had his run-ins with the Spanish tax authorities in recent years.
He was given a 21-month prison sentence in 2016.
The Argentina captain was also ordered to pay a fine of two million euros (2.37 million dollars) for defrauding the Spanish government of 4.2 million euros earned from image rights.
However, the 33-year-old did not serve any jail time after exchanging his sentence for a 250,000 euros fine.
In Spain, defendants without a previous conviction are permitted to serve any sentence of under two years on probation.(Reuters)
