Manchester United target Antoine Griezmann commits to Atlético Madrid - Twitter reacts

By Jack Linley

On the same day that the news of Jamie Vardy’s contract extension with Leicester City was announced, it was revealed that French sensation Antoine Griezmann had committed his future to Atlético Madrid until 2021 – a deal that includes a staggering €100m buy-out clause.

After the Spanish outfit lost the Champions League final to their city rivals, much of the attention turned to whether they would be able to hold onto their star names; of which Griezmann is arguably the most notable, and indeed their manager Diego Simeone.

The future of Atlético’s Argentine boss has been up in the air for a few weeks without a concrete conclusion, but Griezmann’s earlier comments on the matter clearly show his feelings towards the former Atléti player. Hardly mincing his words, Griezmann declared:

“I spoke to him and I’m pretty sure he’s staying,” Griezmann said.

“I’d be raging if he left. I still have a lot to learn from him. I spoke to Simeone, I’m nearly 100 per cent sure he won’t leave.”

Now that the French international has prolonged his stay with Atlético, it seems almost certain that Simeone will soon follow, for a staggering u-turn would be required from this point, given the player’s statement earlier this month.

Embed from Getty Images

Chief among the parties rumoured to be keen on taking Griezmann away from the Vicente Calderon were Manchester United, and it is not difficult to see why. The Frenchman is almost the complete forward, capable of operating across the entire front-line and causing damage wherever he plays.

Griezmann’s dribbling ability is outstanding, almost gliding past opponents at times, and when faced with a chance on goal, rarely misses the target.

He is not having the best Euro 2016 so far, with Didier Deschamps not exactly playing to Griezmann’s multitude of strengths, but the left-footed forward certainly possesses all the talents required to light up his home nation in the remaining weeks of the tournament.

It would seem now that it is more important than ever that Manchester United do indeed secure the signature of Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

When there was still the possibility of Antoine Griezmann coming to light up Old Trafford, his combination with compatriot Anthony Martial, local starlet Marcus Rashford, and the veteran skipper Wayne Rooney, looked to be a mouth-watering proposition.

This would surely have put Manchester United’s rather blunt attacking play of last season firmly to bed. Now though, it appears as though almost all of their eggs are very much in a Zlatan Ibrahimovic-shaped basket.

So, what do you make of the news that Antoine Griezmann has decided to stay at Atlético Madrid, and how much of a hammer-blow is this to Manchester United’s ambitions next term. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Here is how Twitter reacted to the news of the Frenchman’s new contract at the Vicente Calderón:

Many were delighted…

https://twitter.com/_TERG_/status/745997606661152768

https://twitter.com/The_SillyWilly/status/745992770762924032

Despite his significant buy-out clause, some believe that club’s won’t be detered from targeting the 25-year-old in the future…

Manchester United fans were slightly gutted that they’d missed out on the Frenchman…

https://twitter.com/UnitedStandMUFC/status/745925127389519874

https://twitter.com/NeelMUFCVora/status/745937839699857409

A select few doubted that the Red Devils were in for him in the first place…

https://twitter.com/SarriesKid10/status/745922547124953088

As always, Squawka were on hand to provide the stats, just to remind United fans how good the Frenchman is…

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