Atletico Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann is once again the favourite son in the Rojiblanco half of Madrid, having been through a rocky period with the fans. In 2018 it looked as if he might leave for Barcelona, putting together a documentary explaining his decision, before eventually doing so in 2019.
After three equally turbulent years at Barcelona, Griezmann returned on loan last season. After a long period of being booed and whistled, he is now back in their good books, standing out as their best player this season.
The French World Cup-winner was keen show he understood their ire though, while speaking to Movistar last week (via MD).
“It did a lot of damage to the fans. They gave me everything and in the end I left because that’s what I wanted, what I needed. I as a fan would also have been very angry. It’s what I deserved.”
Griezmann also went on to highlight how important the fans were for him, and although the basis was his performances, the support has clearly helped.
“I became very humble and I worked to try to change that. Those who know me know that I need this relationship with the fans, I need their love, your support to perform at the highest level.”
Currently Griezmann has scored or assisted 47% of Atletico Madrid’s goals in La Liga this season. The €20m they spent on bringing him back to the Metropolitano looks especially shrewd now.
