MADRID, Nov 21 — Shakira and her Barcelona beau Gerard Pique have been forced to deny that they are being extorted over an alleged homemade sex tape.

Pique’s spokesperson denied to Mail Online that the couple are at the centre of a blackmail plot.

Spanish newspaper Diario Vasco had claimed last week that the 28-year-old Barcelona defender and his 38-year-old pop star partner were threatened by a former employee who claimed to be in possession of a video containing “erotic content” involving the couple.

The unnamed employee asked for a “big sum of money” to not release the video to the public, the daily added.

The report comes after another Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema was arrested in France for allegedly blackmailing a teammate over a sex tape.

Benzema denies any wrongdoing — but if convicted, he faces prison time of at least five years.