Just when everyone thought that Antoine Griezmann's transfer saga with Barcelona was done Atletico Madrid are claiming the Spanish champions should pay €80 million more for the forward.
Antoine Griezmann's move to Barcelona has taken it's time to be done, considering they looked likely to sign the forward last summer. And just as it's done Atletico Madrid are trying to say it's not.
On Friday Barca confirmed that they'd agreed to pay the Frenchman's €120 million release clause and announced the signing. However not long later, in a statement on their website, Atleti claimed the agreement between the Catalan giants and the player was done before the release clause came down from €200 million and so should be made to pay the extra, saying:
Advert
"Antoine Griezmann, represented by his lawyer, has appeared at the headquarters of the Professional Football League to unilaterally terminate the contract that links the player with Atlético de Madrid, with Fútbol Club Barcelona having deposited the sum of 120 million euros in the name and on behalf of the footballer.
"Atlético de Madrid considers that the deposited amount is insufficient to cover his buyout clause, since it is obvious that the agreement between the player and FC Barcelona was closed before the clause was reduced from EUR 200 million to EUR 120 million. It was also prior to the date on which the clause was modified the communication that the player made on 14 May announcing his disassociation from the club.
"Atlético de Madrid believes that the termination of the contract happened before the end of the last season due to facts, acts and demonstrations made by the player, and therefore has already initiated the procedures it has deemed appropriate to protect their rights and lawful interests."
At the end of last season Griezmann announced that he was leaving Atleti in the summer, a year after he'd announced he was staying amidst rumours he would move to the Nou Camp.
Advert
His former club are now saying that the announcement is proof enough that the player and his new club had already spoken and agreed to the move.
The release clause dropped by €80 million on July 1st, allowing the La Liga champions to wait to sign the player and get him for less.
Ernesto Valverde's side are also being linked with a move to Neymar this summer but they've now got to deal with a potential problem they didn't see coming.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Football News, Barcelona, Transfer stories, Atletico Madrid, Neymar, Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Antoine Griezmann, Transfer news, Spain, La Liga, Transfer reports
