The Spanish Football Federation, SFF, has slammed a 602 fine on FC Barcelona following a complaint from Athletico Madrid over the handling of the interest for Julian Alvarez.

The SFF cited that it imposed the sanction under its Article 133 disciplinary regulations for failure to comply with orders, instructions, agreements or regulatory obligations; stating that the rule requires any club seeking to negotiate with a contracted player to first negotiate with the club in writing.

Athletico alleged that Barcelona approached Alvarez improperly and against the ruling, and lodged a petition against the Blagurana club with FIFA, the world football governing body thereafter ruling that it had no jurisdiction over the matter and handed the matter to the Spanish body, who declared the fine yesterday.

The Camp Nou base side, who had submitted an appeal on Wednesday, claimed that they informed Athletico of their interest and conducted themselves correctly throughout the process but was met with unfair treatment, as well as the player, who was subjected to boos and has been working to repair relations with the club’s supporters.

The Argentine national, since the latest booing incident on Saturday in a game against Deportivo La Coruna in which he registered a goal, disclosed that he had publicly apologized for the timing and manner at which he expressed wanting to leave Athletico.

The sanction mirrors back to an incident between both La Liga giants in 2019 over the saga which involved Barcelona’s approach for Gallic man, Antoine Griezman, who played for both clubs.

The Catalonia club were then handed a 300 fine and warned to desist from violating the rule.

The fine appears to put the saga to an end but with Barcelona appealing, the case is expected to linger on till fully settled.