How Barcelona Players Feel About The Prospect Of The Club Signing Antoine Griezmann

Barcelona players are not thrilled at the prospect of the Spanish club signing Atlético Madrid star Antoine Griezmann in the summer.

The 28-year-old French forward announced that he would be leaving Los Rojiblancos at the end of the season, and while Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain were initially linked with a move for him, both clubs' managers have come out to dismiss the rumours.

With that leaving the La Liga champions in pole position to land him, the players are not happy about the club's decision to sign the World Cup-winning Frenchman.

Sport reports that a 'dressing room source' has said Barça players believe that Griezmann is a 'persona non grata' and they would not welcome the idea of the club bringing him to the Camp Nou.

In fact, the Spanish newspaper added that the players have made those feelings perfectly clear to club president Josep Maria Bartomeu.

It had also been reported that Lionel Messi had called the France international and told him to come to Barcelona.

However, Sport said that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner denied that he made such a call.

According to Sport's Albert Masnou, another issue with Griezmann's arrival would be that he is not a priority for the club.

It has been reported that the dressing room are 'happy' with the signing of Frenkie de Jong and are hopeful of landing Ajax captain Matthijs de Ligt, both of whom would bolster the midfield and defensive options respectively.

"There is also the subliminal message sent out by Griezmann's potential arrival," Masnou wrote.

"The group think that it would be a bad lesson for younger players to sign someone who played cat and mouse with Barça. They think he is fickle."

Barcelona players might not be the only ones who don't want Griezmann to sign for the club.

The publication ran a readers' poll asking if Barcelona should make a move for the Atlético man, who has a €120m release clause in his current deal.

With 50,000 votes cast, 67 per cent of voters were against the idea of Griezmann coming to Barcelona.

Should Barcelona sign Griezmann?

Let us know in the comments.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Football News, Football, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, Josep Maria Bartomeu, Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann, La Liga, Barca, Camp Nou

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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