Lionel Messi denies tax fraud allegations

Barcelona striker Lionel Messi has denied allegations that he and his father failed to pay €4m (£3.4m) in taxes.

Spanish officials claimed on Wednesday that the 25-year-old had filed fraudulent tax returns from 2007 to 2009.

A message on Messi's official Facebook page read: "We have just known through the media about the claim filed by the Spanish tax authorities. We are surprised about those news, because we have never committed any infringement.

"We have always fulfilled all our tax obligations, following the advices of our Tax Consultants who will take care of clarifying this situation."

The Argentine international is thought to earn around €16m (£13.6m) per year with La Liga champions Barcelona.