All eyes were on the Champions League draw balls in Monaco, but the real drama was unfolding behind the scenes. The cameras caught what was meant to stay secret: Barcelona's vice-president face to face with the president of Atletico Madrid.
TNT's cameras, working the sidelines of the draw at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco this Thursday, captured a moment that lit the fuse among Barcelona's fans before the ceremony even began.
Behind the scenes, the lenses picked out a lengthy and intriguing conversation between Rafa Yuste, Barcelona's vice-president and official representative at the draw, and Enrique Cerezo, the president of Atletico Madrid.
The timing could hardly have been more sensitive. Only hours earlier, Atletico had issued a fresh official statement slamming the door on any Barcelona attempt to negotiate the signing of Argentine striker Julian Alvarez. Coach Hansi Flick and sporting director Deco have made him their number one target to bolster the attack after the anticipated departure of Robert Lewandowski.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta had extended an olive branch to Atletico yesterday in a bid to prise open talks. The response came back harsh and swift.
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Julian Alvarez, "the Spider", was absent from Atletico's training in the town of Majadahonda for a second day running on grounds of "illness". That did not stop the Madrid club firing off a statement even more forceful than the last, this time jointly signed with the "Apollo" group that owns the club. It categorically backed the public words of both president Enrique Cerezo and chief executive Miguel Angel Gil, rejecting negotiations with Barcelona entirely.
Nobody has revealed exactly what passed between Yuste and Cerezo in their side conversation. Yet every indication, the latest being Atletico's statement backed by the new owners, confirms that Barcelona are knocking on a door of iron. The Rojiblancos' board have no intention of budging a single step over their star striker.