Begiristain said Wednesday that Rijkaard had requested that Eto'o escape a sanction because he believes the players "can manage themselves."

"He (Rijkaard) is very happy that everything has been resolved so quickly. The problem has been one of dialogue from the moment last weekend's game with Racing ended," Begiristain was quoted as saying by the Web site of sports daily Marca.

Rijkaard added that the striker's remarks would not "affect our relationship," adding the way the affair had been settled had "encouraged the squad, which today has trained better then ever."

Earlier Wednesday, Eto'o and Ronaldinho smiled broadly as they embraced at the start of training.

"A sign that the squad is united is that Ronaldinho is the best friend of Eto'o in the dressing room," Begiristain said.

The previous day, Eto'o called Rijkaard "a bad person" and attacked Ronaldinho for suggesting the Cameroon international had refused to play as a substitute in Sunday's 2-0 league win over Racing Santander.

Eto'o has only just returned from a four-month absence following a serious right knee injury he picked up in a Champions League match at Werder Bremen. The 26-year-old reappeared for five minutes at the end of Barcelona's 0-0 draw with Osasuna on Feb. 4.

Eto'o also said he was caught between two factions at Barcelona, headed by club president Joan Laporta and its former vice president Sandro Rosell.

In an interview with Cadena SER late Tuesday, Eto'o said he wouldn't retract his comments but added it was "a lie" he had insulted Rijkaard.

"Rijkaard and I aren't going to have problems," he said. "If I have something to tell him, we sit down and talk. There's no problem."

Spain's sports press on Wednesday devoted their front pages to the striker's barrage of criticism.

Two dailies Mundo Deportivo and AS ran the headline "Eto'o blows Barcelona up with dynamite," while Marca said "Barcelona explodes."

Papers speculated on the consequences of the affair, with Mundo Deportivo saying Eto'o had caused "the first serious blaze in the dressing room" since Rijkaard took charge in 2003.

"It is possible that nothing will be the same again but for Barcelona's sake efforts must be made to avoid this having a definitive effect on the dressing room," the paper said in an editorial.