Atletico Madrid have this evening confirmed that Antoine Griezmann has informed the club of his desire to move on this summer, with a transfer to La Liga rivals Barcelona now looking imminent.
Griezmann’s Atleti stint
French attacker Griezmann has been plying his trade in the Spanish capital since 2014, after Atletico secured his signature from fellow Spanish outfit Real Sociedad.
And the 28-year-old has since gone on to etch his name indelibly into the history books of Los Rojiblancos.
All told, across over 250 appearances in Atleti’s colours, Griezmann has notched 133 goals, guiding Diego Simeone’s men to a Europa League title, Spanish Super Cup, UEFA Super Cup and a Champions League final.
LYON, FRANCE – MAY 16: Antoine Griezmann of Atletico Madrid celebrates after scoring the opening goal of the game during the UEFA Europa League Final between Olympique de Marseille and Club Atletico de Madrid at Stade de Lyon on May 16, 2018 in Lyon, France. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
This past season, meanwhile, the World Cup winner directly contributed to 33 goals across all competitions.
Metropolitano departure
As per the aforementioned announcement a short time ago, though, the 2018/19 campaign will stand as Griezmann’s last as an Atletico player.
In a statement across the club’s social media platforms, the capital giants confirmed that their star attacker has communicated that he will call time on his Atleti journey this summer:
A clip of Griezmann himself opening up on his decision to seek pastures new has since also been forthcoming, with the Frenchman having provided a farewell message to the Colchoneros faithful:
‘It’s been an incredible five years. Thank you very much for everything. I will take you in my heart.’
Barca bound?
News of Griezmann’s bombshell comes just an hour after Italian transfer expert Fabrizio Romano claimed that Barcelona had opened negotiations with the attacker over a move to the Camp Nou, having decided to activate his 125 million Euro release clause: