Barcelona did not field an ineligible team in last week’s Copa del Rey defeat to Levante by selecting B team defender Chumi, club sources have told ESPN FC.
A report in El Mundo on Thursday claimed Barca were facing expulsion from the Spanish cup after picking Chumi in Valencia when he should have been banned.
The centre-back had been booked the weekend before the game for the fifth time this season, earning an automatic one-match suspension.
That ban was subsequently served on Sunday as Barca B beat Alcoyano, but the El Mundo report says he should not have been available for first-team selection until he’d served his ban.
However, Barca sources told ESPN FC that the rules have recently changed. Bans of one and two games should be served in the competition in which they are accrued — in this case that would cover La Liga or the Spanish third tier, where Barca B play.
A complaint would also have to be filed by Levante or another club within 48 hours of the infraction occurring. That period has now passed.
The case draws parallels with Real Madrid, who were kicked out of the competition for fielding Denis Cheryshev against Cadiz in 2015.
Russia international Cheryshev was supposed to carry over a suspension from his loan spell with Villarreal the previous season.
Levante beat a Barca side which included Chumi 2-1 last Thursday. The two sides meet in the second leg of their last-16 tie on Thursday at Camp Nou.
Ernesto Valverde has named a much stronger squad this time round, with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez both included. Chumi, however, has not been called up.
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