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| Antoine Griezmann during UEFA Champions League match between Atletico de Madrid and FC Porto at Civitas Metropolitano on September 07, 2022 in Madrid, Spain. |
Atletico Madrid and Barcelona have embarked on a legal battle surrounding the loan deal of Antoine Griezmann.
With Atleti not offering the Frenchman game-time in a desperate attempt to avoid paying the €40 million fee at the end of the season, Barcelona are seeking legal measures to intervene and have voiced their interpretation of the loan deal.
Amid all the intense legal battle, Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has offered an update on the situation, suggesting the club do not intend to reach any agreement with Barcelona.
“We have not met with Barcelona nor do we intend to do so. Griezmann’s story is pretty clear,” said Cerezo, as quoted Fabrizio Romano, whose management had sought possibilities to lower the net value of the permanent release clause in the past.
“At the moment we are at the same point, nothing has changed with FCB on Griezmann – same as the beginning of the season”, he added.
Enrique Cerezo’s comments suggest Atletico Madrid are remaining calm about the situation and are not worried by Barcelona’s legal measures. They have an excellent legal team, who believe they are not circumventing any law or the Spanish Workers’ Statute.
Even La Liga’s interpretation of the Griezmann loan has backed Atletico Madrid, suggesting the 50% clause is applicable all throughout the attacker’s two-year loan spell at the club, rather than only the first season, which is how Barcelona interpret it.
Nevertheless, Atleti are not out of the woods just yet and they may still have to pay €40 million if Griezmann picks up a long-term injury and gets sidelined for around six months.
Even a four-month spell on the sidelines could only require the attacker to play around seven matches to meet the 50% criteria, thus forcing Atletico to pay a fortune at the end of the season.
