Barcelona to give ‘full support’ to Lionel Messi in tax fraud case

Argentina striker Carlos Tevez has called on his worldwide team-mates to put in a far better display against Paraguay, with talisman Lionel Messi once again unavailable.

It was revealed on Thursday that the State Attorney had ordered the 28-year-old Barca forward to stand trial ahead of a possible 22-month prison sentence.

Both have denied any wrongdoing.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the United Kingdom played host to one of these shell companies used to hide revenue as well as Uruguay, Belize and Switzerland.

“FC Barcelona has expressed its affection and solidarity to Leo Messi and his family in such a peculiar situation”, the statement said.

The duo have been accused of avoiding payments of up to £3.1m in tax between 2007 and 2009. The club will continue giving full support and assistance on legal, fiscal and administrative levels to the family during this process.

Messi has been ruled out for up to six more weeks following the injury, which he sustained during a La Liga match with Las Palmas last month.

The El Pais newspaper reported recently that Messi told authorities he would “sign anything with his eyes closed” if his father told him to do it.

Rakitic also had special praise for Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez, who scored over 100 in all competitions during the treble-winning season.

Spain has recently been cracking down on tax evasion as part of its fight to fix the country’s public finances after a prolonged recession triggered by the collapse of its once-booming real estate sector.

The former Instituto player remained on the bench for the full 90 minutes of the 2-0 World Cup qualifying loss against Ecuador on Friday, yet Messi is sure the youngster will make a big impact for club and country over the coming years.