Former Barcelona captain Carles Puyol has criticised Ilkay Gundogan for publicly calling out his teammates.

Gundogan called out Ronald Araujo, Robert Lewandowski and Joao Cancelo after their Champions League defeat to PSG.

The German's blast has split the dressing room, but Puyol insists such criticism should be kept behind closed doors.

Puyol said: "Everyone is free to say what they believe. I am in favour of the things that have to be talked about, they are spoken inside the locker room.

"I also think that Gündogan give an opinion without bad intention. Defending is not easy, it is a very fast action, he (Araujo) commits a foul, I am sure that the one who did not want to do that is Araujo, they are things that happen.

"We know perfectly well how all this works, you have to try not to say many things outside, because then they can be interpreted in many ways, but I am convinced that he had no bad intention.

"I don't think Xavi needs to bring anyone together, they will have already spoken inside the locker room. I am not in the locker room, nor have I spoken to anyone, but generally speaking from my experience, I am convinced that if there is any misunderstanding, they will have spoken already. People understand each other and that's it, you don't have to think about it anymore. You are talking more outside than inside, I am convinced."