The timeline of France forward Antoine Griezmann deciding that he wanted to remain at Atletico Madrid instead of joining Barcelona has been revealed.
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Griezmann announced this week that he would be remaining at Atletico despite continued speculation linking him with a move away from the Spanish capital.
The French forward is currently in Russia leading the line for France and it was therefore unusual timing for Griezmann to announce his future plans in the opening week of the tournament.
Just last month the Metro reported that Griezmann had already agreed a five-year deal with Barcelona after talking to Barcelona magician Lionel Messi. Continued reports suggested that a deal had been struck for the French international to join the Camp Nou and it felt inevitable that Griezmann would become a Barcelona player by the start of next season.
However, following this week’s surprise announcement that Griezmann would remain at Ateltico, the timescale in relation to the Frenchman’s decision has been revealed by a close teammate.
Lucas Hernandez is a full-back for both France and Atletico Madrid and is thus naturally very close to Griezmann. Hernandez has discussed Griezmann’s decision to remain at Atletico and has revealed that the decision was made a month ago.
Hernandez spoke to Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo with his comments translated in a recent report from CalcioMercato.
“Griezmann? His choice to stay was taken already a month ago. The video of his announcement was released recently, but we already knew.” [Comments per CalcioMercato]