Barcelona Unhappy With Real Madrid As Pressure Mounts on Catalan Club Over Referee Payment Allegations

• Barcelona have been accused of paying off Enriquez Negreira in exchange for referee favours
• Real Madrid and Barcelona share a good working relationship despite the rivalry between the clubs
• Los Blancos have confirmed they will be present at the upcoming hearings against La Blaugrana

Barcelona and Real Madrid may be bitter rivals on the field of play but at a boardroom level, they're not against working with each other.

Presidents, Joan Laporta (Barcelona) and Florentino Perez (Real Madrid) have worked together in the past, despite the animosity between the two sets of supporters.

Barca and Real are the only two Spanish sides pushing for the formation of a European Super League, and the La Liga champions refused to support a statement against La Blaugrana over the recent referee payment scandal.

As noted by Football Espana, all the teams in the top two divisions of Spanish football released a statement calling for a thorough investigation into allegations that Barcelona were paying the former vice-president of the Referee's Committee, Enriquez Negreira.

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Madrid were the only club, apart from Barcelona, that refused to support the statement. However, the relationship between the two sides could now be breaking down. As noted by Barca Universal, the Catalan club are deeply upset by Madrid's latest statement.

Los Blancos have since released a statement indicating they will be present against Barcelona in the upcoming hearings.

The Catalans were reportedly surprised but also disappointed by the news and believe it could drive a wedge between the clubs. Barcelona have maintained that they are innocent in the matter, but evidence continues to paint them in a bad light.

Legal action against Barcelona

Barcelona is expected to be the subject of a public prosecutors investigation into the ongoing El Caso Negreira/ Negreira Case, Sports Brief also reported.

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It is alleged the Catalans giants paid a former vice-president of the Technical Committee of Referees, Negreira, nearly £7.4 million from 2001-2018.

Prosecutors have officially denounced Barcelona and will pursue legal action against the club in light of the payments after protests from 18 of the 20 La Liga clubs.