France forward Antoine Griezmann has been attracting interest from a number of top clubs this summer thanks to his performances for Atletico Madrid this past season. His agent has now revealed that the player had held talks with Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain before signing a new deal with Los Rojiblancos.
Griezmann has further enhanced his reputation as one of the best strikers in the world with his brilliant showing for Les Bleus at Euro 2016. The 25-year-old striker won the Golden Boot at the European Championships for his six goals which made all top clubs in Europe even more interested in trying to wrest him away from Atletico Madrid.
His agent Eric Olhats has recently confirmed that the Frenchman turned down PSG, among others, in order to stay at the Vicente Calderon.
“There were discussions with Olivier Letang,” Olhats told French outlet RMC.
“There was interest from Paris. We listened because it is all the same a club with objectives and resources.
“After numerous discussions, and drawing a parallel a little bit with other offers, we opted for continuity.”
He added that there were other approaches as well. However he believes Atletico are equipped to compete for major titles next season and the Frenchman doesn’t need to move in search of big trophies.
“There were approaches,” he said. “It’s 100 percent certain that he’ll be at Atletico Madrid next season.”
Apart from the Parisian club, Griezmann was a long time transfer target for Premier League giants Chelsea. He was also linked with a big money move to their rivals Manchester United. However all his suitors were dealt a massive blow when he signed a new and improved contract with Atletico Madrid to keep him at the club till 2021.
Los Rojiblancos had signed the Frenchman from Real Sociedad for a transfer fee of £24m in 2014, but his value has almost tripled thanks to his excellent performances. Griezmann has notched up 57 goals in 107 appearances for Atletico over two seasons. His attacking excellence came to the fore in the Champions League last season, as he played a crucial part in Atletico’s elimination of European giants Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
Griezmann is now all set to play a crucial part in Los Rojiblancos manager Diego Simeone’s plans, as they battle to upstage La Liga giants Barcelona and Real Madrid and seek Champions League glory next season.
