In the summer of 2019, FC Barcelona signed French star Griezmann from Atletico Madrid for a transfer fee of €120 million. This figure is not as high as the previous introduction of Dembele's 150 million euros and Coutinho's 160 million euros, but in the history of soccer, there are very few stars who can join for such a high transfer fee.
However, is the striker, who is not considered a top player in both Atletico Madrid and the French national team, really worth such a high price? In fact, Barcelona brought in Griezmann at the time, there may be a deeper consideration, that is to position him as Messi's potential successor. Like Messi, Griezmann can also play a number of positions on the front line.
However, two seasons later, Barcelona was disappointed with Griezmann's performance. 2019-20 season, Barcelona for the first time in four failed; 2020-21 season, the team in the Champions League for the first time in the last sixteen, the end of the La Liga title race was a lost cause.
In 2019-20, Griezmann made 35 La Liga appearances for Barcelona, including 31 starts, contributing nine goals and four assists.In 2020-21, he performed similarly to last season, contributing 12 goals and seven assists. The numbers are moderate, but hardly spectacular. To talk about "Messi's successor" would be a travesty.
In Barcelona's key battles in La Liga and the Champions League, Griezmann always seems to be unable to be the shining star whenever someone needs to step up and share the scoring load.
As Barcelona legend Stoichkov said in a media interview, "Griezmann has failed to score against Liverpool, Juve, Paris, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid, and the club invested a huge amount of money to bring him in."
Barcelona are preparing for a massive reshuffle of their squad this summer that could see as many as 14 players leave the club, with Griezmann perhaps being one of them.
According to Spanish media, Barcelona are close to signing free agent Argentine striker Aguero and Dutch striker Depay, meaning Griezmann could be sold.
Striker Luis Suarez, who was sent back to Atletico Madrid for free by Barcelona, has scored as many goals in La Liga this season as Griezmann, Dembele and Braithwaite combined. Barcelona obviously can't bring Suarez back again, and there are media claims that Barcelona is trying to trade Griezmann for Atletico's Felix, but that's just a one-sided wish. Might as well consider trading Dembele for Dortmund's Harland.
Since the departure of Neymar and Suarez, Barcelona have no reliable candidate in the forward line other than Messi. Keeping Griezmann has lost its value for Barcelona. It is almost impossible for Barcelona to get a good return in the transfer market, but it is still possible to sell or rent him out for a lower price.
