Barcelona have announced they will appeal Luis Suarez's two-match Copa del Rey ban and have distanced themselves from comments made by their defender Dani Alves on social media.
Suarez was handed his suspension by the Spanish Football Federation on Friday for something he was alleged to have said to Espanyol players during an incident in the tunnel after Wednesday's fiery Copa del Rey derby at the Nou Camp. The last-16 first-leg encounter, which was the second time the two city rivals had faced each other in the space of four days, was won 4-1 by Barca, with Espanyol having two players sent off.
If Suarez's ban stands he would miss next week's return leg as well as the first match of the quarter-final if Barca get through, but the club are hoping to have the ruling overturned. They said on their website: "In the appeal, FC Barcelona is expected to argue that the player, as he later stated, did not use the allegedly offensive words that were attributed to him in the referee's official notes following the match."
Meanwhile, Barca have also released a statement in response to an Instagram post made by Alves on Friday where the Brazil defender criticised the media and said he felt "increasingly ashamed to be part of this sport".
Barca said: "The Barcelona first team player Dani Alves has published today on Instagram a post that is very critical of the media including using offensive language. Beyond the views, which the player can express with total freedom, Barcelona want to make it clear that they do not support or share the offensive comments that have been published."
