Luis Suarez has hit back at comments made by Barcelona CEO Oscar Grau which have led to uncertainty over Lionel Messi's new contract with the club and tension between the players and the board.
Grau warned that Barca will have to apply "common sense" when negotiating with Messi to ensure the club remain within their budget and don't overspend. He also revealed he's told Gerard Pique to stop complaining about referees.
Reports in Catalan newspaper Diario Sport claim his comments have annoyed the club's players amid speculation there was already a rift growing between the dressing room and the board.
"With Messi what you have to do is give him a new contract, not have common sense," Suarez told reporters after Wednesday's win over Athletic Bilbao when asked for his opinion on the situation.
Messi's current terms expire in 2018 and the club remain confident of extending his stay at Camp Nou, but Grau's comments have re-awakened Premier League interest.
The Sun say both Manchester City and Manchester United are monitoring the situation and that the former are prepared to pay a £100 million transfer fee and hand Messi a record £800,000-a-week five-year deal.
Asked about what Grau said, Barca boss Luis Enrique responded: "I don't know what the CEO said, but tell me one game in which Leo Messi hasn't been decisive.
"I don't know about numbers, I know about football. We all want to enjoy watching Messi here for many more years, nothing else matters for me."
The situation has parallels to when former vice president Javier Faus said that he saw no reason why Barca should improve "this gentleman's" contract "every six months."
Messi replied on that occasion by accusing Faus of being a businessman who "knows nothing about football."
Sport also says Grau's comments about Pique have not sat well with the players who make up Luis Enrique's squad. The centre-back has been extremely critical of referees since the turn of the year and the club would prefer it if he remained quiet.
"We have spoken with the captains and with Pique and we've explained the club's wish, which is to not speak about referees," Grau said. "If we're looking for the best for Barca, we have to continue without talking about referees.
"From my experience, you don't need to protest to referees. There are situations we don't like, but at the end of the day, on the pitch the best team wins."