In a recent report, Mundo Deportivo revealed that Manchester City have denied having any interest in Barcelona forward Antoine Griezmann this summer. It is understood that the Mancunian giants have dismissed claims that they would launch a move for the France international during this summer transfer window (via Mundo Deportivo).
Griezmann’s Impressive Form At The Nou Camp Last Season
Griezmann had a fruitful campaign with Barca in Spanish football as he scored and created some important goals for them in the final third. The Frenchman registered 20 goals and 13 assists in 51 matches for the Catalan outfit last season across all fronts.
The 30-year-old proved his consistency by averaging 2.0 shots, 1.2 key passes and 0.7 dribbles per 90 minutes in the 2020-21 La Liga campaign. He even interchanged possession relatively well in the opposition half after making 87.3% of his attempted passes in the Spanish top-flight (stats via whoscored).
Griezmann has carried a lot of the goal-scoring workload alongside Lionel Messi, so he would have been an ideal candidate to succeed Sergio Aguero as he would have flourished playing as a secondary or a false nine forward in Pep Guardiola’s 4-3-3 system at the Etihad Stadium.
Should Man City Change Their Stance On Recruiting Griezmann?
Griezmann has become a decent finisher in front of the opponent’s goal and can even engineer a few inviting opportunities for his teammates in the attacking end of the field. He can also make some intelligent runs with or without the ball and usually works hard in running the channels for his side.
However, he can sometimes go quiet in some of the high-profile matches which can make him a liability on the pitch. Plus, there are some question marks over whether he can cope with the physical nature of English football if the Premier League champions were successful in bringing him to the Etihad this summer.
However, Man City’s recent denial of holding any interest in the French talent will disappoint some of their fans as Griezmann would have been a quality acquisition for them this summer. If Pep Guardiola plans to move in for another world-class striker, it makes sense for him to not change his stance on the Barca forward right now.
But the failure to land a big-name striker could be quite detrimental to Guardiola’s plans for next season, so they should at least monitor Griezmann’s situation rather than completely give up on him without bringing in a suitable replacement for Aguero this summer.
