Barcelona could be forced to pay an extra €80m for Griezmann as reports suggest evidence of illegal negotiations

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Transfer fees have grown so much in the past few years it’s almost impossible to tell what represents value these days and how much any player should actually be worth. 

Barcelona have already paid €120m for Griezmann according to the BBC, but it looks like they might have to pay substantially more after some reports emerged about the negotiations.

A report in El Mundo has stated Barcelona could be forced to pay an extra €80m for the Frenchman. The issue comes from the negotiations surrounding the move to Barcelona and when he actually agreed to move to the Nou Camp.

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The story suggests the release clause in Griezmann’s Barcelona contract dropped from €200m to €120m at some point in the last year. El Mundo claim they have seen emails which show negotiations taking place between Barca and Griezmann’s representatives before the release clause was reduced, and this means they may be forced to pay the extra €80m.

It does seem a huge mess which is currently being dealt with by the courts.

But it will raise an interesting question about how much Griezmann is worth, surely paying €200m for a 28 year old who doesn’t seem to fit into your system can’t be seen as a good deal for Barcelona?

The €200m man?

He’s played well so far this season, but for the transfer fee you would expect to see him step up and become the main player in the absence of Lionel Messi. The reality is Ansu Fati has broken through and has impressed more than Griezmann.

It also raises an interesting point about hindsight if Barca do end up having to pay €200m in total. Surely they would rather have spent that money on Neymar than bringing Griezmann to the club? Of course they didn’t know the Brazilian would be available when they started the negotiations, but it’s something they will be thinking.

 

 

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