Football
Jonathan Johnson, PSG correspondent 7y

Marco Verratti to sue over reports he partied before PSG loss - agent

The agent of Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Marco Verratti has threatened legal action against L'Equipe after the French publication claimed that the Italy international and teammate Blaise Matuidi were at a nightclub in the early hours of Tuesday morning before flying to Barcelona.

Unai Emery's men were knocked out of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 after a 6-1 defeat at Camp Nou completed the most improbable of 6-5 aggregate victories.

Verratti and Matuidi were both criticised for their poor performances in Catalonia and L'Equipe reported the pair were spotted at a popular Parisian nightclub just hours before they were due to fly with the squad to Spain.

PSG have also responded to L'Equipe's claims, branding them "an insult to their [Verratti and Matuidi] professionalism and their club" and "malicious" before criticising the publication for routinely inaccurate information and having "zero credibility."

Speaking with Radio Crc in Italy, Donato Di Campli responded angrily to the allegations and announced that he and his client will be taking legal action.

"I will not go into our relationship with PSG but what is certain is that what has been written by L'Equipe is absolutely false," said the Azzurri star's representative. "We will take legal action and we are studying the road ahead. Marco's image is sacred and we will not allow anyone to bash him.

"It is one thing to criticise the lad on a technical level and another to discuss his personal image, saying things that are absolutely false."

Le Parisien have since ascertained that Matuidi, who is a Nike-sponsored player, was not with Verratti at a Puma event on Monday and was instead at his home in Yvelines.

The former Pescara man did visit the nightclub last weekend but that was on Saturday night after an evening spent dining with his French teammate, veteran Brazilian left-back Maxwell and Manchester United superstar and ex-PSG teammate Zlatan Ibrahimovic who was visiting.

Verratti and his PSG teammates will attempt to respond to the hammer blow of their second leg defeat in Barcelona when they travel to face FC Lorient in Ligue 1 on Sunday night. 

PSG also challenged L'Equipe about a story published on Friday claiming that the club had made a request to the Paris police prefecture to parade down the Champs-Elysees in the event of a Champions League victory.

The six-time Ligue 1 champions branded L'Equipe's claims as "false," "totally false" and "lies" before hinting that the publication have an agenda against them.

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