ALEXIS SANCHEZ’S agent has blasted branded the Manchester United star’s “unfair” tax fraud punishment – a suspended 16-month prison term after a plea bargain.
Former rugby player Fernando Felicevich appeared to come close to accusing the Spanish authorities of xenophobia as he claimed foreign stars like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo had also been put through a nightmare.
Chile striker Sanchez admitted defrauding €1million (£890,000) on image rights while with Barcelona.
But he will not be locked up as first-time offenders in Spain rarely serve jail time.
Although Sanchez confessed to two tax crimes as part of the agreement with prosecutors, his super agent went on the attack after details were made public.
Felicevich blamed the Spanish Tax Agency for leaking the resolution and accused prosecutors of singling out overseas players.
He labelled the deal unjust, claiming some foreigners were being exposed to “media and political pressure”.
He described Alexis’s offences as only “supposed crimes”, even though Sanchez’s plea bargain involved admitting he had broken the law.
Argentinian Felicevich, who brokered Sanchez’s controversial move from Arsenal last month, said in a lengthy statement: “Today the Spanish Tax Agency has once again leaked details of an agreement between our representative Alexis Sanchez and Spanish prosecutors.
“Spanish prosecutors and its Treasury Department have placed more than 30 professional footballers in the same situation, accusing them of the same crimes and threatening them with prison sentences.
“Almost every member of the Real Madrid and Barcelona squad have been placed in this situation, even though these clubs use a standard pay formula for their first team which has been accepted by the Spanish Treasury in the past.
“Throughout all these cases, whilst violating the rights of those under investigation, the repeated, continuous and obscene leaks have been an element of pressure on the players to force them to accept agreements like the one today, which once again has been leaked to the media.
“On some occasions, there has been no other way out but to surrender to the pressure, and to avoid worst injustices, accept unfair agreements like this one.
“Many players and managers have had to do the same thing, and many others will continue to do so.”
Felicevich insisted the “alleged crimes” were practices used over a long period of time by many players and previously accepted by the Spanish taxman.
He added: “Prosecutors have decided on their own criteria which players to accuse, almost all of them foreigners, and exercised threats and public pressure through the media to force the players and managers to accept these totally unjust agreements.
“In these circumstances, and despite having shown that Alexis has not committed any crime, we have been obliged on the recommendation of our advisors, to accept this unjust agreement and therefore alleviate the emotional, personal and economic erosion caused by having to endure lengthy trials.”
He also spoke out on Messi’s problems with the taxman – which ended with him accepting a suspended prison sentence – and Ronaldo’s ongoing court fight over alleged tax fraud.
Felicevich said: “Seeing the nightmare companions like Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo etc have been through, we have reached the conclusion that it is better to accept an unfair settlement so we can move on and not continue to be subjected to media and political pressures.”
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Sanchez was accused of defrauding the Spanish Treasury while at Barcelona from 2012 to 2013 by using a shell company in Malta.
His former teammate Messi received a 21-month prison sentence for tax fraud in July 2016. It was later changed to a EURO 252,000 (POUNDS 223,000) fine.
Ronaldo and United boss Jose Mourinho are still embroiled in ongoing tax fraud cases with the Spanish taxman.
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