By leaving Atlético Madrid for FC Barcelona in the summer of 2019, Antoine Griezmann was probably wrong in his career choice. The French striker has never returned to his best level since his departure. And to make matters worse, his salary has dropped considerably in Catalonia.
Antoine Griezmann will probably not admit it. But three years later, the Frenchman has reason to regret his career choice. In the summer of 2019, the Atlético Madrid star decided to join the FC Barcelona to sit at the table of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez. Their association then seemed promising on paper. Especially since the philosophy of Barça seemed to correspond to his qualities.
We therefore did not expect to see Antoine Griezmann lose his football during his two seasons in Catalonia. The striker has never returned to his best level since his departure. And to make matters worse, the former Real Sociedad player lost a lot of money! According to the revelations of the newspaper El Mundo, the extension signed at Atlético Madrid in 2018, when he had already come close to a transfer to Barça, guaranteed him a net annual salary of 17 M € the first year, plus 3 M € as a readjustment.
A salary almost halved
Then the following four years each guaranteed him €20 million net. In total, this lease would therefore have offered Antoine Griezmann € 100 million net over five years. The French international still chose to leave following only a year, accepting the proposal from FC Barcelona which offered him only €98 million gross over five years, around half of what he received in the Spanish capital.
Barca nevertheless presented him with huge bonuses to compensate. However, not all have been unlocked. Suddenly, during his two seasons at the Catalan club, the striker currently on loan to Atlético Madrid had only received 46.5 M€ gross, while he would have received 40 M€ net from the Colchoneros. And the striker has not finished paying the consequences, he whose playing time is limited this season due to a disagreement between Barça and Atlético Madrid.