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BARCELONA

Piqué: Barcelona board unhappy with star over Griezmann video

TV3 says Barça chiefs are "upset" with Gerard Piqué over his role in Antoine Griezmann's announcement that he is staying at Atlético.

Barcelona
El presidente del Barcelona, Josep Maria Bartomeu, y Gerard Piqué.
ALBERT GEAREUTERS

The Barcelona board is reportedly "upset" with Gerard Piqué over his involvement in the video that saw Antoine Griezmann announce that he is not moving to the Camp Nou.

Griezmann decision video produced by Piqué's company

TV3 says Barça chiefs - and many of the LaLiga giants' fans - are baffled that last night's documentary 'La Decisión' ('The Decision'), which saw Blaugrana target Griezmann finally pledge his future to current club Atlético Madrid, was made by the production company Kosmos Studios - which Piqué himself heads up.

Barcelona's board, led by club president Josep María Bartomeu, is said to feel that Piqué has crossed a line, particularly in the way he publicised the video on social media, taking to Twitter with messages containing 'popcorn' and 'applause' emojis for a film in which Griezmann publicly rejected the Catalan outfit.

Umtiti also joins in social-media publicising of documentary

Piqué's defensive partner at Barça, Samuel Umtiti - who shares the same agent as the youth product, and plays alongside Griezmann for France - joined in the player's Twitter references to popcorn, further fuelling the ire of a club which, as things stand, does not plan to issue any public statement despite being mentioned by name in Griezmann's decision.

Piqué responds to criticism over Griezmann film

Late last night, Piqué responded to criticism over the video by tweeting: "Remember one thing. There'll be people who criticise it, because everything that's new generates repudiation. But the most important reflection that 'La Decisión' offers is that sometimes not everything they sell you is true."

It isn't the first time that the 31-year-old has been a central figure in a significant decision affecting Barcelona's playing staff. Last year, he memorably posted a photo of himself alongside then Barça team-mate Neymar with the caption "He's staying", only for the Brazilian to join Paris Saint-Germain. Piqué later claimed that he knew the forward was leaving the Camp Nou before publishing the tweet.