Gerard Pique once published his payslip on social media in response to claims surrounding his salary at Barcelona.
In January 2020, Pique was one of three Barcelona first-team players who had their wages supposedly ‘leaked’ by the Spanish TV3 programme Onze.
The now-retired former Barcelona and Manchester United defender Pique denied the claim that he was on huge money during his time at Barca.
But not only did he do that, he also shared his bank statement on X (Twitter), which revealed half his annual pay – £2 million.
The payslip shows that he earned £4 million (around £75,000 per week) for the year 2021.
Spanish journalist Lluis Canut, who worked for the Spanish TV station, had claimed he was in fact earning £11.7 million for just one season.
Underneath the screenshot of his bank statement, Pique wrote: “Characters like this charging public television to defend their friends.
“Here is 50 per cent of my payroll collected on December 30th. Have some respect for yourself.”
X/@3gerardpique
Canut made the same claim about Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, who both played for Barcelona at the time.
Busquets and Alba now play for Inter Miami, where they joined ex-Barca team-mate Lionel Messi last summer.
Pique, meanwhile, announced his surprise retirement from football in November 2022, and called time on his career following a La Liga clash against Almeria days later.
He subsequently became president and owner of the Kings League, an indoor football league held in Barcelona.
At the time of the claims made by Canut, Barcelona also released their own statement of denial.
They wrote: “In relation to the manifestations of Mr Lluis Canut carried out yesterday in the programme ‘Onze’ of TV3, FC Barcelona wants to clarify the following:
“1. The information on the salaries of certain first team has not, in any case, been provided by the Club and its origin is unknown.
“2. In any case, the amounts referred to in the information are erroneous, do not conform to reality and, furthermore, in the case of the three players referred to, it gives fixed amounts that, being variable, will possibly never be reached, to merit.
“3. It is false that the aforementioned players have only deferred 100 per cent of their salary. Messrs. Pique, Busquets and Alba gave up part of their salary when they signed the last contract renewal last summer.”
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