Atletico Madrid players and staff agree 70 per cent pay cut with £32.6m-a-year Simeone hit – but he’ll still earn £10m

ATLETICO MADRID players and staff have agreed to cut their wages by 70 per cent – with boss Diego Simeone set to lose £22.6million due to coronavirus.

The LaLiga giants have agreed to follow the likes of Barcelona by taking a huge reduction on their wages.

Read our coronavirus in sport live blog for the latest news & updates

The move has been put in place to ensure the 430 members of Atleti staff working behind the scenes are able to still be paid.

It was enforced by the board as part of the legally available measures created by the Spanish government during the crisis.

The club revealed the news in a statement on their club website on Thursday.

All football in Europe has been suspended due to coronavirus, save for Belarus.

And clubs across the continent are paying the price, losing millions in match-day revenue and sponsorships, amongst other things.

Many of Europe’s biggest clubs, including Atletico Madrid, pay their players – and managers – handsomely.

In fact, Simeone is the highest-paid boss in world football, taking home a staggering £32.6m per year.

A 70 per cent cut, means he will lose £22.6m – but will still pocket £10m.

Spain has been hit hard by coronavirus, with 110,238 reported cases and 10,0003 deaths.

The number of cases seen in the country has skyrocketed in recent weeks and is now narrowly behind Italy, whose outbreak started earlier.

The nation, like much of Europe, is now in lockdown – with 950 people dying from the disease on Wednesday alone.