Antoine Griezmann Move To Barcelona Will Complete Lionel Messi’s Conversion To A Midfielder

Antoine Griezmann Move To Barcelona Will Complete Lionel Messi’s Conversion To A Midfielder
16:17, 08 May 2018

For the first time, Barcelona have admitted their interest in Antoine Griezmann. Speculation has swirled for months that the Atletico Madrid striker will pitch up at the Camp Nou this summer, but just weeks after the club “strongly denied” such claims finally we have some confirmation of the Catalans’ pursuit of the Frenchman. 

Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu confessed on Monday that he has met Griezmann’s agent this season, adding fuel to the fire that will surely lead to the striker leaving Atleti this summer. “It was last October,” Bartomeu responded when asked whether any contact between Griezmann and Barcelona had taken place. “It was a meeting, but nothing more.”

Despite Bartomeu’s insistence that there is “nothing more” to the speculation around Griezmann, it seems likely that he will be a Barcelona player by the time the summer transfer window closes. But where will the Frenchman play? This is a team that already boasts one of the strongest starting lineups in the European game, after all. Why are Barca so keen to sign Griezmann?

The answer might have more to do with Lionel Messi than it does any other player. The Argentine has been deployed in a deeper position in recent years and with Andres Iniesta set to leave Barca at the end of the season he is only likely to slip deeper into midfield. Messi will, in time, become a midfielder. He’s already one of the best passers in the game. He has the qualities to thrive there.

The signing of Griezmann will complete Messi’s midfield transformation, giving Luis Suarez a strike partner while allowing the Barcelona number 10 to take on the role vacated by Iniesta. It would also allow Ernesto Valverde to adopt the 4-3-3 formation that worked so well for Barca under Luis Enrique, with Griezmann capable of playing on the left or right.

Barcelona must become a more adaptable, more versatile side under Valverde if they are to rise to the top of the European game again and Griezmann will help in that regard. He might have been used as a central striker by Diego Simeone at Atletico Madrid, but it’s worth keeping in mind that he was signed from Real Madrid as a wide forward. He could return to that role at Barca. 

Of course, the signing of Griezmann would raise questions over the purpose and role of Philippe Coutinho, who was signed from Liverpool for a club record fee just a few months ago. Could Messi as a midfielder and Coutinho co-exist in the same team? What about Ousmane Dembele? Where would he fit in? Valverde has some squad remodelling to do this summer and Griezmann could be the kingpin that changes a lot, including the course of Messi’s career.

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