Tottenham allegedly missed out on the signature of Antoine Griezmann in 2014.
Antoine Griezmann of Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann has admitted in his new book that he could have joined Tottenham Hotspur in 2014, as reported by AS.
Griezmann, 26, came up through the ranks with Real Sociedad before starring in La Liga with the San Sebastian outfit, and his performances earned him a 2014 move to Atletico Madrid.
The forward has become a superstar in the Spanish capital, smashing 86 goals in 174 games for Diego Simeone’s men, emerging as one of Europe’s top players.
Now, Griezmann has revealed how it all could have been so different, having discussed previous interest in his signature before joining Atletico.
As quoted by AS, from Griezmann’s new book, the France international claims that Pep Guardiola once wanted to sign for Barcelona B, before adding that he could have joined Tottenham in before the World Cup 2014.
Griezmann claims that Spurs wanted to land him as a replacement for Gareth Bale, who had joined Real Madrid in 2013, but he instead moved on to Atletico.
Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann
Spurs may well feel that Griezmann is the one who got away on that basis, especially given that Sky Sports reported that the fee paid by Atletico for his signature was just £24million.
Now, Griezmann has an £88million release clause in his contract (BBC Sport), and Manchester United and Barcelona are expected to compete for his signature in 2018.
Spurs won’t get anywhere near that fee, but fans will now be left imagining an attacking quartet of Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli and Griezmann – but can only wonder what might have been.
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