Former Barca Defender Called Griezmann The Wrong Choice Of Club

Antoine Griezmann (Photo: Antara))

JAKARTA - Former Barcelona defender, Jeremy Mathieu, believes that his compatriot, Antoine Griezmann, chose the wrong club when he came to Las Blaugrana.

"He (Griezmann) is not at the level he was at Atletico," said Mathieu, quoted by Antara from Goal on Tuesday, February 23.

Griezmann was brought in by Barcelona from Atletico Madrid for 120 million euros in the 2019/20 season. He is the club's third most expensive player under Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele.

Given the large amount of funds disbursed by the club, Griezmann himself is considered unable to meet expectations. Especially when compared to his performance when he was still at Atletico Madrid.

Griezmann failed to lift Barcelona's appearance. The stats have improved slightly this season following Luis Suarez's move to Atletico.

This season, the 29-year-old striker has scored six goals and six assists in 22 appearances in La Liga. In total in all competitions, he has contributed 12 goals and 10 assists in 34 matches.

"I think the decision was wrong for him to join Barcelona," said Mathieu.

"At Atletico, he is an important part of the team and I do not believe he has that role at Barcelona," added the player who was signed from Valencia.

Mathieu was a Barca defender in the 2014–2017 period. Together with the Catalonia giants, he won two La Liga titles, the Champions League and three Copa del Rey trophies among other titles.

The player who has played for the French national team five times decided to retire last year after suffering a knee injury during a training session at his last club, Sporting Lisbon.