Barcelona were banking on signing Antoine Griezmann right until the last minute. However, the forward chose to stay with Atletico Madrid who will pay him a €23million per-year in a new deal that will last until 2023. He had asked the Catalan club for an salary of €25million.
Atletico Madrid managed to secure Griezmann in a contract until 2023, which was confirmed after the decision taken in documentary that was shown last week, provoking a whirlwind of different opinions.
The Frenchman was criticised for being centre-stage in a programme that had Gerard Pique as one of its producers, and for making out that Barcelona would be an exciting option for him.
Barca had even reached a preliminary agreement with the player, knowing that his release clause this summer would stand at €100million.
Griezmann continually turned down Atleti's offers to renew his contract and his eventual decision was swayed by the Europa League final win, in which he scored a decisive brace. Griezmann was keen to win trophies and this was a key factor in his choice.
Diego Simeone went to see him at his home to insist that the best thing for his and the club's future would be to stay, until Atletico were pushed to giving the player more the €23million a season.
According to 'Sport', the Frenchman was asking for €25m at Barca, but the club weren't ready to pay him that much.
The same source has stated that had they signed Griezmann, it would have increased the risk of the club, who have an income of about €1billion, making a loss.
In total, the transfer fee and the salary over the length of the contract would have come to around €350 million. That price was too much for the Barça president to stomach, especially when he knew of the forward's indecisiveness.