Gerard Pique is said to be furious that Philippe Coutinho is set to be handed a bigger contract than him at Barcelona, should the club lure him away from Liverpool.
Barcelona have not given up hope of signing Coutinho, despite Liverpool supposedly not willing to listen to offers in the New Year.
Coutinho made it clear in the summer that he wanted to leave when he handed in a transfer request with Barcelona having three bids knocked back.
But his potential arrival could spark unrest in the Barcelona dressing room.
That’s according to Diario Gol, who claim Pique is not happy about the prospect of Coutinho coming in and being handed a bigger contract than him.
Currently only Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi earn more than the former Manchester United defender.
But Pique is expected to ask for a contract extension, with his deal ending in 2019, and that could spark Sergio Busquets into requesting a pay rise to be on similar money to Suarez as reward for their dedication to the club.
Real Madrid have been given a boost in their pursuit of Thibaut Courtois, with the Chelsea shot-stopper reportedly keen on moving back to the Spanish capital.
Courtois spent three years in Madrid plying his trade for Real’s arch-rivals Atletico on loan from Chelsea.
It was there that he was able to establish himself as one of the best goalkeepers in the world before returning to Stamford Bridge in 2014.
The La Liga giants have reportedly grown frustrated in their attempts to sign David De Gea, who they came close to getting in 2015 only for the deal to fall through in the final minutes of the transfer window.
And Spanish newspaper Marca claim Courtois remains an “outside bet” to move to the Bernabeu.