The president of La Liga says he “doesn’t care” about Mason Greenwood’s past and wants the Manchester United forward to stay in Spain beyond this season.

The 22-year-old faced charges including attempted rape and assault but the Crown Prosecution Service announced in February last year that the case had been discontinued.

He moved to Getafe on loan last summer, and La Liga chief Javier Tebas has been impressed with him to such a degree he hopes he stays for the longer term.

“He’s doing really well at Getafe as a player and I hope he continues to be successful and he continues to stay in Spanish football because that’s always good for us,” Tebas told a media briefing at the Financial Times Business of Football Summit on Thursday.

“He is just another player. He had a past, but not a past we can do anything about. He was innocent and wasn’t condemned. We can’t be judges for everything. If we did that, we’d have no teams.

“I’m a lawyer, so it’s important to say he is not condemned. He was acquitted here (in the UK). Should we have reopened the case in Spain? Do I know the case in great detail? No.

“Greenwood was not condemned, so I don’t care.”

Manchester United’s co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe said last week that a fresh decision would be made on Greenwood this summer now that Ineos has been delegated control of football operations at Old Trafford.

Reports last year that United were planning to retain him following an internal investigation were met by public outcry and Ratcliffe acknowledges that a decision will have to be made when Greenwood returns about what happens next – but insists nothing has been finalised yet.

“It’s quite clear we have to make a decision. There is no decision that’s been made,” Ratcliffe said at a media briefing to mark the completion of his purchase of a minority stake in United.

Asked asked if the Greenwood situation would be a “fresh decision”, Ratcliffe said: “Yeah we will. Absolutely. We will make a decision, and we will justify it one way or the other.”

Ratcliffe added: “He’s on loan obviously, but he’s not the only one – we’ve got one or two footballers that we have to deal with and we have to make a decision on, so we will do that.”

LaLiga's handling of the "absolutely disgraceful" instances of racist abuse towards Vinicius Junior has been "completely inadequate".

That was the message from Kick It Out chair Sanjay Bhandari after Vinicius was subjected to more abuse by sections of the crowd at Valencia's win over Real Madrid last Sunday.

Valencia's punishments for the incident were reduced on appeal, with the partial closure of Mestalla Stadium cut from five matches to three and their financial penalty also sliced.

Bhandari, chair of the organisation aiming to eradicate racism from football, says the Spanish Football Federation and LaLiga president Javier Tebas have failed to support Vinicius.

"I think the treatment we've seen of Vinicius has been absolutely disgraceful," Bhandari told Stats Perform at the Football Business Awards.

"It's 10 or 11 games, it's not just this last weekend, it's been happening over the course of the last two seasons.

"The response of the Spanish authorities has been completely inadequate and it's actually been worse than inadequate because it's made the matter worse.

"The way Javier Tebas, who runs LaLiga, responded trying to blame Vinicius and treating him as if he's a problem when actually he's the victim… it's really sort of going back 30 or 40 years."

Tebas was a vocal critic after Vinicius labelled LaLiga racist, the league's president criticising the 22-year-old for "not informing himself properly" before subsequently apologising for those comments.

The incident – and Tebas' reaction to it – sparked widespread condemnation of LaLiga and Spanish football's relationship with race, with Bhandari calling for further action on the issues.

He added: "They need to get on with taking more concrete steps to kick discrimination out of Spanish football, it's not acceptable to have whole stands of fans doing monkey chants.

"Making monkey noises and shouting monkey to Vinicius, that's totally unacceptable and there shouldn't be any deflection and making excuses for that kind of behaviour, which is what we have seen.

"They need to get on it and if that means closing the stand, that's a good step. We welcome that and fines are a move in the right direction.

"But if it doesn't stop that should move to points deductions and further sanctions."

LaLiga president Javier Tebas claims with the correct legal framework he can eradicate racism in Spanish football within six months.

The problem has been an issue for some time but hit the headlines on Sunday when Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior spoke out after being abused at Valencia, saying Spain was a racist country because of “continuous episodes across several cities”, and his club filed a hate crime complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office.

That prompted a tetchy response to Vinicius on social media from Tebas, for which he subsequently apologised, but after complaining the league’s hands were tied by the country’s law which means LaLiga can currently only identify and report incidents and punishment is rarely handed out, the outspoken president is adamant he can rapidly eliminate the problem.

“What we want is the power to do more things. With the power we are convinced within months this would be solved,” he told a specially-arranged press conference.

“We are going along the legal route and I think in six months’ time this will be at zero and we will be the best league in the world.

“The competencies we want are for those intolerable behaviours – racism, homophobia.”

When challenged on his six-month solution claim, Tebas added: “We have been able to have economic control to stop our clubs gong bankrupt so if we are given the competencies we can put an end to this because it is easier to stop than financial control.

“Tomorrow, a communique will go to the head of government and political parties requesting the law is urgently modified against racism, xenophobia and intolerance and requesting the (Spanish Football) Federation and LaLiga to have competencies.”

Asked why LaLiga had not made such a request before, Tebas said: “That was probably a mistake of ours too but we thought we were making progress in the courts when we made complaints directly.

“We have seen it is not enough and we need greater agility and more speed to solve these problems more quickly.”

In the interim, Tebas said Vinicius would have his full backing should he decide to walk off the pitch in the face of further racist abuse.

“If he feels affected of course I’d encourage him to leave the pitch,” he said.

“He and the whole team could abandon it. That is the decision of the referee but I’d encourage him to leave the pitch – he will be supported by me personally and LaLiga.”

LaLiga has set up dedicated reporting channels, via email and its website, in order to speed up the identification of people who engage in racist behaviour but since the creation of LaLiga’s integrity and security department in 2015, there have only been, according to documentation provided by LaLiga, more than a dozen racist incidents linked to matches reported.

However, LaLiga also lists nine separate incidents relating to Vinicius since December 2020, four of which have been resolved but with only two found to have featured racism, with the clubs involved allowed to issue sanctions themselves.

Tebas denied Spain was a racist country but admitted he was concerned about the league’s worldwide image in the light of the latest accusations, although he did not think it would deter black players from signing for LaLiga clubs.

“If I weren’t concerned I’d be crazy. Of course I am concerned and we will work to find a solution to turn this image around. Spanish football is not racist,” said Tebas, who said he would speak to Vinicius when things had “calmed down” but had contacted sponsors to offer reassurances.

“We think it doesn’t reflect reality. This is unexpected and difficult but something we have to face up to, we can’t just hide and cry in the corner.

“We do protect black sportspeople from any racism. We will continue to protect them from any insults they receive on the field, in their professional career and outside their professional career.”

LaLiga president Javier Tebas has apologised for suggesting Vinicius Junior was being “manipulated” when the Real Madrid winger called out racism he has suffered in Spain.

The Brazil international took to social media to speak out after being abused in Sunday’s game at Valencia, saying it was a problem he had endured throughout the league.

Tebas’ response on Twitter, in which he said “Before you criticise and insult LaLiga, you need to inform yourself well, Vini Jr. Don’t let yourself be manipulated”, was roundly criticised for not addressing the issue and the LaLiga boss has now said sorry.

“I think that the message, and the intention I had, was not understood by a significant number (of people), especially in Brazil,” he told ESPN Brazil.

“I did not want to attack Vinicius, but if most people understood it that way, I need to apologise. It was not my intention, I expressed myself badly, at a bad time.

“But I had no intention of attacking Vinicius, but rather clarifying a situation, because Vinicius had recorded a video supporting LaLiga’s actions.”

Tebas, in defending the league’s approach – especially in relation to Vinicius – added: “If I hurt someone, they thought I was racist, it’s far from reality.

“I feel sorry for what happened, and that’s why we denounced it. And we didn’t just denounce it, we took special actions at his games.

“We spoke to the clubs, so that they could provide more security, identify fans. LaLiga takes care of Vinicius. And, if they misunderstood what happened I have to apologise.”

Vinicius threatened to leave the pitch in the second half at the Mestalla after being subjected to alleged monkey chants and Real, who said the incident constituted a “hate crime”, filed a complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office.

Valencia were given a partial stadium ban for five matches and fined 45,000 euros (£39,000) – a punishment the club called “totally disproportionate” as they confirmed they would lodge an appeal, while head coach Ruben Baraja vowed to fight back against “smears”.

England manager Gareth Southgate has led calls for stricter punishment since his side came close to walking off the field after players were subjected to racial abuse during a match in Bulgaria in 2019.

“It is a disgusting situation. I think it is so bad that it looks like it is going to force change. I am hoping there will be something positive to come from it,” Southgate said on Wednesday.

“If anyone suggests to me we don’t have a problem in society with racism then there is another example of what we are dealing with, and more examples of people burying their heads in the sand, quite frankly.

“Hopefully it is a story that doesn’t just disappear in 24-48 hours without there being some significant change.”

Vinicius, whose red card against Valencia on Sunday was rescinded, missed Real’s game at home to Rayo Vallecano with a minor knee complaint but was at the ground to see his team-mates wear shirts with his number and name on the back before kick-off.

Javier Tebas would be making a "very stupid" move if the LaLiga president prevents Barcelona re-signing Lionel Messi, according to a director of the Camp Nou giants.

Juli Guiu, vice-president of marketing at Barcelona, reacted a day on from Tebas saying LaLiga would not alter its regulations to help smooth such a deal.

Spanish league chief Tebas is waiting for Barcelona's "viability plan" for next season, saying he hoped the club could "make the necessary moves to make space for Messi to come in, but of course we are not going to change any rules for Messi to sign".

Messi scored 672 goals in 780 games for Barcelona, setting records in both regards, but he tearfully left on a free transfer two years ago after financial restrictions prevented the club giving him a new contract.

There has since been frequent talk of Messi returning from Paris Saint-Germain, with his initial contract in France up at the end of the season.

It appears to be a strong possibility, and Guiu told Spanish broadcaster RAC 1: "It would be good news, not with the figures that have been published, but it would be great news.

"He is still the number one footballer in the world, without a doubt. [Manchester City's Erling] Haaland doesn't have the pull that Messi has.

"It is clear his return would be positive in the world of marketing, but that doesn't mean he's going to come back."

Guiu was asked whether Tebas would benefit from LaLiga having Messi back, and said: "Of course, and it would be very stupid if he didn't help us if this agreement ends up taking place."

On Wednesday, Tebas said there were ways in which Barcelona could fund a deal for the player who captained Argentina to World Cup glory in December.

"Barca can make moves; they sell players," Tebas said. "That's what we hope happens because I am a fan of Messi and I would like Messi to play in our league."

Barcelona "can make moves" to sign Lionel Messi, but LaLiga will not alter its regulations to help, even if Javier Tebas is keen to see the superstar forward back in Spain.

Messi, widely considered to be one of the greatest players of all time, left Barca on a free transfer two years ago after financial restrictions prevented the club from giving him a new contract.

There has since been consistent talk of Messi returning from Paris Saint-Germain, with his initial contract in France up at the end of the season.

But Barca's financial situation still has not improved to the extent they could immediately bring their great number 10 back into the fold.

Indeed, LaLiga chief Tebas told the Blaugrana last month they would have to recoup a significant sum in transfer fees and wage cuts before making any signing.

That remains the case, with the league determined not to ease its rules, but Tebas sees a path to Barca signing Messi again.

"As of today, no [Barcelona cannot sign Messi], but there is a lot of time left," Tebas said on Wednesday. "We are waiting for their viability plan [for next season].

"I hope they can make the necessary moves to make space for Messi to come in, but of course we are not going to change any rules for Messi to sign.

"Barca can make moves; they sell players. That's what we hope happens because I am a fan of Messi and I would like Messi to play in our league.

"But we won't change any rules. It is complicated, but I think they have the capacity to do it."

Messi's PSG deal included an option for a further year, while he has also been heavily linked with a move to Inter Miami in MLS.

Barcelona called for the resignation of LaLiga president Javier Tebas after it was alleged he provided false evidence against them.

La Vanguardia reported on Monday that Tebas gave documents to prosecutors that attempted to incriminate the club and two former presidents as part of the ongoing Negreira case.

It has been claimed Barcelona made payments in excess of €7million to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira's company – DASNIL 95 SL – for written reports and DVD assessments of referees for the club prior to games. The payments were allegedly made between 2001 and 2018, when Negreira was vice-president of Spanish football's refereeing committee.

According to the report, the documents issued by Tebas were part of another case, not linked to either of Barcelona's former presidents and were decades old, something the LaLiga chief called "false" on social media.

However, Barca are keen for a deeper explanation from Tebas and want him to issue his resignation.

"Barcelona, as president Joan Laporta has said in recent weeks, feel the victim of a media lynching based on events that have never occurred: Barca have never bought referees," a statement read.

"It is not the first time the president of LaLiga has used his media machinery to attack Barcelona but, aside from his usual nonsense, we could never have imagined he would have hoped to incriminate our club with false evidence.

"The news published by La Vanguardia is of such severity that it should alert all LaLiga clubs, as they are practices that should have no place in the functions attributed to the president of LaLiga. For this reason alone, but also out of dignity and respect for the presidency of LaLiga, Mr. Tebas should resign from his position.

"However, knowing his obsession with persecuting Barcelona and constantly showing his aversion and antipathy towards our club, we understand that he will persist in his behaviour of continuing to harm our club."

Barcelona called for the resignation of LaLiga president Javier Tebas after it was alleged he provided false evidence against them.

La Vanguardia reported on Monday that Tebas gave documents to prosecutors that attempted to incriminate the club and two former presidents as part of the ongoing Negreira case.

It has been claimed Barcelona made payments in excess of €7million to Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira's company – DASNIL 95 SL – for written reports and DVD assessments of referees for the club prior to games. The payments were allegedly made between 2001 and 2018, when Negreira was vice-president of Spanish football's refereeing committee.

According to the report, the documents issued by Tebas were part of another case, not linked to either of Barcelona's former presidents and were decades old, something the LaLiga chief called "false" on social media.

However, Barca are keen for a deeper explanation from Tebas and want him to issue his resignation.

"Barcelona, as president Joan Laporta has said in recent weeks, feel the victim of a media lynching based on events that have never occurred: Barca have never bought referees," a statement read.

"It is not the first time the president of LaLiga has used his media machinery to attack Barcelona but, aside from his usual nonsense, we could never have imagined he would have hoped to incriminate our club with false evidence.

"The news published by La Vanguardia is of such severity that it should alert all LaLiga clubs, as they are practices that should have no place in the functions attributed to the president of LaLiga. For this reason alone, but also out of dignity and respect for the presidency of LaLiga, Mr. Tebas should resign from his position.

"However, knowing his obsession with persecuting Barcelona and constantly showing his aversion and antipathy towards our club, we understand that he will persist in his behaviour of continuing to harm our club."

LaLiga has refuted claims made in a Spanish newspaper that the league is in danger of financial collapse and will now take legal action.

El Espanol published an article titled "LaLiga in the face of economic collapse: DAZN and CVC are considering breaking their contracts with Javier Tebas".

The report suggested two crucial partners were considering their relationships, with Jorge Calabres saying "Spanish football is in an extreme situation" as DAZN and CVC study the possibility of breaking their contracts.

However, LaLiga issued a swift response on Wednesday rejecting the claims.

They said in the statement it was "absolutely false that DAZN and CVC are studying breaking their contracts with LaLiga".

The statement added: "It is surprising that, despite not having confirmation from DAZN and CVC, Jorge Calabres and El Espanol have published this false news, citing unspecified "sources in the sector". 

"It is also worrying that neither the aforementioned journalist nor any other person from El Espanol has contacted LaLiga to verify the information, in yet another lack of journalistic rigour and professionalism. 

"The latter is not surprising, given the obvious campaign of personal attack that El Espanol and Jorge Calabres are in against LaLiga and its president, Javier Tebas, through continuous false, manipulated or misrepresented publications in recent months.

"We will take legal action against those responsible for this publication, and against all those who disseminate these falsehoods, in defence of our interests and those of the clubs."

Among a host of other reasons, the report claimed CVC was considering its position because LaLiga were unable to guarantee the long-term participation of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.

El Espanol reported that if an early termination clause was triggered, CVC could end its contract and ask LaLiga clubs for its investment to be returned with six per cent interest.

But LaLiga said these concerns were untrue and Tebas, LaLiga's president, also criticised the report personally, slamming the article as "fake news".

Barcelona are nine points clear of Real Madrid at the top of the table this season, as the Catalan club seek what would be their first LaLiga title in four years.

Investigations into Manchester City's alleged financial misconduct have "taken too long", believes LaLiga chief Javier Tebas.

The Premier League champions have been charged by the competition with over 100 rule breaches in relation to their financial dealings following an investigation lasting Wober four years.

City have denied any wrongdoing, and say they will fight the accusations, which could lead to sanctions including a points deduction and potential relegation.

Tebas, who has been frequently critical of the Premier League's wealth, suggested the investigation had dragged its feet however, having first raised the issue in 2017.

"Now it is 2023, and nothing has moved on, but suddenly there is an enquiry," he told the Financial Times Business of Football Summit.

"It has taken too long. We know there was an alleged breach of 100 articles. So any decisions will have to be adopted accordingly by the Premier League."

Tebas drew comparisons to LaLiga title frontrunners Barcelona, who have frequently been in conflict with the governing body over their own financial conduct.

The Blaugrana have amassed eye-watering debts, and were forced to activate additional financial levers in order to fund their transfer market activity last year.

"One of the worst things about financial controls is if you don't follow or comply with it," Tebas added.

"Barcelona are so important for LaLiga in Spain, but if I looked away and didn't pay attention to what is happening with their finances, it would be a gross error.

"Our whole system would collapse. It is impossible for them to do transfer business in the summer because of the numbers. This needs to be resolved, and we need to act."

Barcelona will not face any sporting sanctions for payments allegedly made to a company part-owned by former referee Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, LaLiga president Javier Tebas has confirmed.

The Catalan giants have been alleged to have paid €1.4million between 2016 and 2018 to Negreira's company DASNIL 95 SL, with the claims first revealed by broadcaster SER Catalunya earlier this week.

Newspaper El Pais alleged that in return for payments, Barcelona received a written report and DVD assessment of referees prior to games.

Barcelona have strenuously denied wrongdoing, stating they previously hired "an external consultant" who provided video of youth players from other teams, together with "technical reports related to professional refereeing", which it said was "a common practice among professional football clubs".

The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) said on Thursday it had begun a "request for information" from Barcelona and the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA), of which Negreira was a long-time vice-president.

However, statute of limitations laws in Spain only make it possible to punish clubs within three years of any offences, meaning Barca do not face the threat of a points deduction, though criminal action has not been ruled out.

"It is evident that in 2018 and in previous years the 'compliance' regulations which monitor conflicts of interest, both for Barcelona and the referee's committee, failed," Tebas said in a video message published on social media on Thursday.

"From what we are seeing, what's been revealed in the media, they obviously didn't work as these services should never have been provided. Neither the amounts of money, nor the facts which have been unveiled.

"We must clarify from the outset, we have already looked into [sporting sanctions] – it is not possible to impose sports disciplinary sanctions because five years have already passed.

"Criminal jurisdiction is another issue. Now the prosecutor's office is investigating the events that occurred and whether there may be a possible crime of corruption between individuals in terms of match-fixing. Let's see how that investigation ends.

"At LaLiga, we are going to wait and respect the prosecutor's office investigation and once that has finished, see whether it does decide to file the appropriate complaint or lawsuit in the corresponding courts. From there, we will make decisions."

Negreira refereed in the Spanish top flight between 1977 and 1992, before taking up a job with the RFEF between 1994 and 2018.

Barca president Joan Laporta said it is "no coincidence" that the allegations have come to light with the Blaugrana sitting eight points clear at the top of LaLiga.

Javier Tebas slammed the "ignorance" of The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) president Luis Rubiales for living "in another world" in regards to the proposed European Super League.

Outspoken LaLiga boss Tebas has been a vociferous critic of the new Super League plans, a competition featuring 60 to 80 teams spread across several divisions, which guarantees clubs 14 games per season.

The new Super League proposals came almost two years after 12 clubs, including LaLiga giants Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, attempted to form a breakaway competition.

Rubiales seemingly infuriated Tebas by suggesting to the Europa Press the latter was the "best ambassador for the European Super League".

Tebas wrote on Twitter on Tuesday: "The president of the RFEF lives in another world, and shows his ignorance in economic data, television and such.

"By the way, in UEFA, they do not think the same as he does in his statement."

Tebas refuted claims Spanish football will be unable to compete with England's Premier League, referencing a "sustainable" model LaLiga clubs are operating under.

"LaLiga does not compete with the [Premier] League for a commercial issue," Tebas added. "It is a losing league. It is losing billions of pounds a year and that is how it is financing its transfers. 

"Our big clubs with television rights are totally competitive with the English, where they are not with losses. And here we have decided on a sustainable football that we are not going to lose.

"TV audiences go up, stadiums are filled, losses are controlled, but Rubiales' analysis is that LaLiga should follow the example of competitions ruined by the RFEF and a streamers event [the Gerard Pique-backed Kings League], in which they disguise themselves as clowns. I don't get that out of my amazement.

"We are always open to listening and learning, but if the one who tries to give us lessons is a ruinous manager who also lies, then you have to go to the data."

The RFEF swiftly responded to Tebas' series of messages, insisting the governing body has developing Spanish football at the forefront of its aims.

"We make proposals with respect and education," the RFEF posted on Twitter. 

"We denounce the falsehoods that, no matter how much the president of the League repeats them, are not true. We remain open to collaborating to make Spanish football better."

Javier Tebas accused European Super League organisers on Thursday of prowling like a cunning wolf and trying "to fool" those at the heart of football.

The president of Spain's LaLiga scoffed at newly announced plans for a competition featuring 60 to 80 teams spread across several divisions, guaranteeing clubs 14 games per season.

He had predicted in November that such a proposal was coming and was scornful then.

Now Tebas says the European Super League is only interested in how it might serve to benefit the rich clubs, with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus the three teams who remain subscribed to the proposed new competition.

A similar proposal to the latest Super League concept was put forward in 2019, on that occasion by UEFA and the European Club Association, when it appeared the Champions League may become more of a closed shop.

However, that did not get off the ground, and if Tebas has his way, nor will this.

"The Super League is the wolf, who today disguises himself as a granny to try to fool European football," Tebas wrote on Twitter, "but HIS nose and HIS teeth are very big.

"Four divisions in Europe? Of course the first for them, as in the 2019 reform. Government of the clubs? Of course only the big ones."

A similarly dismissive statement posted to the LaLiga Corporativo Twitter account read: "The Super League is the wolf in the story of Little Red Riding Hood.

"It is disguising itself as an open and meritocratic competition, but underneath there is still the same selfish, elitist and greed driven project. Don't let their tales fool you."

The European Super League venture is being driven by the A22 group, led by CEO Bernd Reichart, after its previous April 2021 launch ended in calamity and humiliation, with nine of the 12 clubs pulling out almost immediately after a thunderous backlash.

Those were Premier League giants Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham and Arsenal, LaLiga's Atletico Madrid, and Serie A clubs Milan and Inter.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta continues to back the controversial plans, which many in the game claim will cause lasting damage to domestic competitions.

Laporta said on Thursday: "It is progressing. It will be an attractive, sustainable competition, respectful of the health of the players.

"What we want is for the dialogue with UEFA not to break, and to harmonise with the national leagues. We must establish a deeper debate to coexist with the domestic leagues, as the Champions League coexists with the leagues.

"All to the point that the promoters of the Super League will have the right to organise competitions. It evolves. It is in progress.

"We are committed to the Super League project and to the sustainability of European football. We cannot compete with domestic clubs, nor with the Premier League, which allocates seven billion to the competition... there are comparative grievances.

"What commits us is the sustainability of football. We are three big clubs and we don't want to leave UEFA aside. It will be done in agreement with UEFA. We are not going through the path of rupture, we are going through the path of dialogue."

The Football Supporters Association, representing fans in England and Wales, accused European Super League backers of wilful ignorance towards fans.

It said: "The walking corpse that is the European Super League twitches again with all the self-awareness one associates with a zombie.

"They say 'dialogue with fans and independent fan groups is essential' yet the European Zombie League marches on – wilfully ignorant to the contempt supporters across the continent have for it."

LaLiga has accused the Premier League of "cheating" the transfer market after the division's record-breaking £815million January window.

The English top-flight spent more than the rest of Europe's top five leagues combined in a bumper month of purchases, with Chelsea leading the way at £291.7m.

Those eye-watering numbers have been met with raised eyebrows across Europe, with Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti acknowledging LaLiga trails the Premier League in the markets.

But now the Spanish league's corporate general director Javier Gomez, endorsed by president Javier Tebas, claim the English top-flight is cheating the transfer system.

"We are aware there is a lot of talk about how LaLiga's economic control means Spanish clubs sign less than Premier League clubs," the former said in a video posted by the latter on Twitter.

"The reality is that at LaLiga we want clubs to spend what they can afford and generate themselves, that is to say their own revenues.

"It is true that shareholders are also allowed to support the club and put money in to spend more than the club itself can generate, but within certain limits.

"Essentially, [in England] they are 'doping' the club. They are injecting money not generated by the club for it to spend, which puts the viability of the club at risk if the shareholder leaves.

"In our opinion, that is cheating, because it drags down the rest of the leagues.

"That is our fight, demanding that UEFA implements a new economic regulation that prevents the shareholder of a club from putting in more than a certain amount and that it enforces this rule and sanctions non-compliant clubs."

Chelsea's flagship move for Argentina's World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez saw them pay £105m to Benfica, shattering the British transfer record.

The club also bought Mykhailo Mudryk for £62m and Benoit Badiashile for £33m, among others.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta believes a revamped version of the European Super League could launch as soon as 2025, without any Premier League clubs taking part.

Barca, along with Real Madrid and Juventus, remained committed to the Super League project in the aftermath of a failed launch in April 2021, though the other nine founding clubs quickly withdrew their support.

In October, it was revealed that plans were afoot to revive the competition, with A22 Sports Management chief executive Bernd Reichart promising an "open format" as he sought support for the proposal.

UEFA called the Super League's supporters "greedy" after meeting with Reichart the following month, while European Union Court of Justice [CJUE] advocate general Athanasios Rantos dealt a blow to the proposed competition by stating UEFA and FIFA could lawfully sanction participating clubs. 

However, Laporta remains optimistic regarding the Super League project, with the remaining clubs hopeful the CJUE will rule any UEFA sanctions are incompatible with EU competition law.

"In March or April we will have the CJUE ruling. It will be a very important sentence and I think it will benefit the clubs," Laporta told Cadena SER on Thursday.

"The Super League will be an open competition. I would not have entered this project if the competition was not open. 

"We want the governance to belong to the clubs. I hope that UEFA will occupy one more chair at the governance table. If the resolution is favourable, I think the Super League will be a reality in 2025."

All six of the Premier League clubs originally involved in the Super League – Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea and Liverpool – withdrew their support following a fierce public and media backlash to the plans in 2021.

Laporta does not expect any English sides to participate in the first edition of any future Super League, though he believes they will eventually join the competition if it succeeds.

"We will have a European competition that competes with the Premier League," he said. "I believe that the English teams will not enter at first. 

"We'd love for them to come in, but my opinion is that initially, they won't. I believe that everything will end with a merger later."

One feature of Laporta's tenure as Barca president has been his poor relationship with LaLiga president Javier Tebas, who he believes is not doing enough to ensure Spanish clubs can compete with their English counterparts.

"Our personal relationship has never been bad, but it has been tense. Tebas is a complicated person," he said. "He should be more concerned with recovering subscribers to football on television, increasing the income of Spanish football.

"We are defenders of financial control, but if you make a comparison between the Premier and the Spanish league... it is up to us to make them look at it."