According to reports, Barcelona is getting ready to file a lawsuit against Atletico Madrid, a rival in La Liga, regarding Antoine Griezmann’s future.
In August 2021, the 31-year-old Griezmann returned to Atletico on loan from Barcelona. According to a stipulation in the contract, the France international is expected to return to Atletico permanently at the end of the current season, but only if he logs a specific amount of playing time.
This season, Griezmann has only appeared after the 60th minute. Diego Simeone, the Atletico manager, is reportedly starting Griezmann from the bench to avoid invoking the player’s €40 million (£35 million) transfer clause.
However, Barcelona’s account of the events is quite distinct. Barcelona believes Griezmann has already met his transfer clause because he participated in more than half of the games last season, according to credible media outlets.
During the 2021/22 season, the forward appeared in about 80% of Atletico’s games. Griezmann’s minutes played this year are allegedly unimportant in Barcelona’s view because the loan is just for one season, not two. According to reports, Barcelona is getting ready to file a lawsuit soon to make Atletico pay up.
Meanwhile, Atletico believes that a permanent agreement will only be required if Griezmann plays more than 30 minutes of football in 50% of the games this season.
