Things are falling apart in Bracelona FC, with star player Lionel Messi at war with one of the club’s directors. Messi, the reigning world’s best footballer, has rocked Barca with a fiery outburst in which he accused director Javier Faus of “knowing nothing about football.”

The comments are a response to Javier Faus saying two weeks ago that Barcelona had no reason to sit down with ‘this gentleman’ and discuss his current contract.

The tone of Faus’ comment was deemed inappropriate by most Barcelona fans at the time and now Messi has hit back.

Speaking to Catalan radio RAC1 from Argentina Messi said: “Barcelona is the best club in the world and should be represented by the best board members too. Senor [Javier] Faus is someone who doesn’t know anything about football and wants to manage Barcelona like a business, which it is not.”

He added: “Besides, I would remind him that neither I nor anyone from my camp has asked for any wage increase and he knows that very well.”

Barcelona’s board are under huge pressure because of a court investigation into their purchase of Neymar and the EC enquiry into illegal state funding.

Now their star player, usually so reticent, has gone public over his very clear dislike for the current board.

•Story adapted from a Daily Mail report. Photo shows Lionel Messi.