Griezmann willing to take paycut to join Barcelona - reports
Atlético striker Antoine Griezmann is one of two main targets for Barcelona this summer, along with Ajax captain Matthijs de Ligt.
Antoine Griezmann is willing to take a cut in his salary in order to join Barcelona, according to French daily Le Parisien.
Griezmann was a prime target of the Catalan club last summer but the French international opted to stay at Atlético Madrid, where he has played for five seasons. In order to keep him at the Wanda Metropolitano, Atlético raised his annual salary to 23 million euros as part of a new deal, which also saw his buyout clause rise to 200 million euros.
But as agreed with the club last summer, that clause will fall to 120 million euros in July, which Barcelona would pay to bring him to the Camp Nou on a four- to five-season contract, reports Le Parisien.
Last month, Spanish TV program Jugones reported that Griezmann’s camp had approached Barcelona to tell them of his interest in playing at Camp Nou next season.
And if the Le Parisien reports are true, the French striker is even willing to leave himself out of pocket to make that move happen.
Barcelona’s summer spending plan: De Ligt and Griezmann
Following their shocking elimination from the Champions League against Liverpool on Tuesday, Barcelona are pushing ahead with their plan to sign a top-quality defender, midfielder and striker for next season.
Having already secured the signing of midfielder Frenkie De Jong from Ajax in January, the LaLiga champions have their eye sets on striker Greizmann and De Jong’s Ajax team mate, defender Matthijs de Ligt, to complete their plan.
Griezmann: unpopular figure among Barcelona supporters
While De Ligt would undoubtedly be welcome with open arms by Barcelona fans, Griezmann has been the subject of animosity among the Camp Nou faithful after he snubbed a move to the club last summer.
In March, separate poles taken by Barcelona’s two main sports papers, Sport and Mundo Deportivo, showed the vast majority of Barca readers surveyed did not want to see Griezmann at the club.
A few weeks after those poles were taken, Griezmann was subjected to taunting at Camp Nou during the Barca-Atléti game in April, where home fans whistled him and chanted “Griezmann, bastard, get out of Camp Nou”.