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Basketball: Barcelona deny abandoning player in Istanbul

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Reuters

BARCELONA - FC Barcelona&#x27;s basketball team have denied they refused to allow their player Thomas Heurtel to board their plane after a Euroleague defeat by Anadolu Efes in Istanbul on Tuesday.The club had been condemned by the basketball players&#x27; association after Spanish newspapers El Pais and El Mundo among others said the Frenchman had not been allowed to return as he had negotiated a move to rivals Real Madrid.But Barca released a statement on Wednesday denying Heurtel had been treated badly, adding he had travelled to the match &quot;to solve his professional future&quot; and after negotiations broke down it was agreed he would not return with the team.&quot;The player was not neglected in any case and was given all the facilities - hotel for the night, regular flight ticket and all the relevant documentation - to be able to travel and return to Barcelona the next day,&quot; said the club&#x27;s statement.&quot;Finally, the club would like to announce that Thomas Heurtel still currently belongs to FC Barcelona, whilst waiting to be able to solve his future in the coming days.&quot;Before Barca released their statement, the basketball players&#x27; union said they had been in touch with Heurtel and were assisting him.They also criticised Barcelona for their treatment of him while COVID-19 infections were surging across Europe and disrupting travel.&quot;At 00:30 we have a player &#x27;abandoned&#x27; in a foreign city. His club did not let him get on the plane home,&quot; the organisation said on Twitter.&quot;Do we really need to explain to the people in charge what the situation is like right now with COVID-19? Is there no humanity left?&quot;The organisation&#x27;s president Alfonso Reyes said on Twitter the incident was &quot;unjustifiable and undignified&quot;.Heurtel did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Reporting by Richard Martin Editing by Christian Radnedge)<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QivpeZapCwo?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

BARCELONA - FC Barcelona's basketball team have denied they refused to allow their player Thomas Heurtel to board their plane after a Euroleague defeat by Anadolu Efes in Istanbul on Tuesday.

BARCELONA - FC Barcelona's basketball team have denied they refused to allow their player Thomas Heurtel to board their plane after a Euroleague defeat by Anadolu Efes in Istanbul on Tuesday.