Barça insists its position is valid

Barcelona have settled on a surprising response after being fined over a complaint from Atletico Madrid concerning their player Julian Alvarez, according to a press report on Tuesday.

The case dates back to Barcelona's interest in signing the Argentine striker, who is tied to Atletico Madrid until June 2030 on a contract that includes a 500 million euro release clause, according to Spanish reports.

Atletico accused the Catalan club of making contact with the player and trying to lure him away despite his ongoing deal. Those contacts, they argued, came during the period of contractual protection, which restricts negotiations with a player unless the governing rules are followed.

The Spanish Football Federation handed Barcelona a fine of just 602 euros, a penalty branded trivial.

According to the newspaper "Marca", Barcelona refuse to accept the fine and will not pay it.

The Catalan club call the amount "paltry", yet they will not pay it on moral and principled grounds, believing their conduct was correct. Marca confirmed that Barca will appeal the decision in a bid to have the fine cancelled.

Inside Barcelona's offices, officials acknowledged that the fine is "laughable". It is a trifling sum for a club their size, but they refuse to pay.

Not because of the money, of course, but because they believe they did nothing wrong. For that reason they will appeal this penalty and every other one tied to the case.

Barcelona insist their contact with Alvarez was proper, and that Atletico Madrid were told directly of their interest in the striker.