From the meteoric rise in Madrid, to the depths of hell in Barcelona and back following what was supposed to be the dream move, Antoine Griezmann has seen it all in what were meant to be the best years of his career.
But while we’re all obsessed with peaks and troughs, and players reaching the promised land of the elite level, what if we’re all too caught up in the footballing rat race? Too obsessed with players doing it by the book?
Griezmann is currently ripping up the script and writing his own fairytale ending. One that has been engineered by a forbidden return to former employers, a dazzling World Cup display and the latest in a string of outlandish haircuts.
Two assists in Atletico Madrid’s free-scoring, 5-2 romping of Valladolid over the weekend was the latest in a string of glorious performances from the Frenchman, who continues to sparkle and stand out – not least because of that new, pink do he’s sporting.
Griezmann 🤝 Morata
Lovely combination by the pair for Atleti’s third goal of the night 🔴⚪#LaLigaSantander pic.twitter.com/RkvIVwkaPk
— Viaplay Sports UK (@ViaplaySportsUK) April 30, 2023
Order is restored in the force of La Liga right now. And it’s strangely kind of comforting. Barcelona sits top of the tree and look set to re-establish their annual, one vs one main event tussle for the title with Real Madrid after a few years of chaos, while Atletico quietly sit in third place, merely waiting to pounce as the best underdogs do.
Better yet, they’re doing it with Griezmann back on their side and leading the line for Diego Simeone as he so often excellently did, before making that fateful move to the Camp Nou and losing everything that makes him so wonderful.
He lost his smile.
In exactly the same way Shawn Michaels did during the peak of the Attitude Era, injuries, low morale and missed opportunities saw the Frenchman fall away from the top and become a villain in the footballing landscape.
But Griezmann was never meant to be the villain – even if he did release that strange documentary in 2019 that really tested our love for him.
No. He’s the ultimate babyface. The blue-collar. He possesses flair, charisma, and technical ability in abundance and has a spectacular catalogue of goals to his name. He’s the guy destined for the top.
And while many feel he ‘failed’ by failing to grab the bull by the horns at Barcelona, returning to Atleti and re-discovering his form could be an ascent to the top in itself….
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