Barcelona: Joan Laporta, president of FC Barcelona soccer club, said on Monday all payments made to a company owned by a senior refereeing official were transparent and came in exchange for advisory and not to get any illegal sporting advantage.

A Barcelona court agreed to take on the case last week after prosecutors filed a complaint over what they alleged were payments of 7.3 million euros ($7.95 million) from 2001 to 2018 to firms owned by Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira.

Laporta said there was a media campaign to discredit the club.

Messi to return?

Meanwhile, Laporta has fuelled Barca hopes that Lionel Messi could return to the club this summer after a video emerged online showing him answer ‘yes’ to a supporter’s question regarding the Argentine returning.

Messi’s immediate future is up in the air with his Paris Saint Germain deal set to expire this summer amid reports of tensions having emerged between him and the club post-World Cup.