Criticism of Antoine Griezmann unfair in season of struggle for Barcelona  

In a season of relative struggle for Barcelona, much criticism has fallen on the shoulders of expensive summer signing Antoine Griezmann. There has been talk that he has failed to settle in his new team and that his relationship with star man Lionel Messi has been strained.

But how much of this is really true and has Antoine Griezmann truly struggled to adapt to life at the Nou Camp?

Before signing for Barcelona, Griezmann spent five seasons at Atletico Madrid. During his time under Diego Simeone he played 257 games and scored 133 goals. However his game was about far more than just goals as he also contributed a very impressive 50 assists.

During his five years at the club he averaged a goal or assist every 110 minutes. He also won the Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, Spanish Super Cup and was a runner-up in the Champions League.

His best season in Madrid was in 2015-16 when he played 54 games, scored 32 goals and assisted seven.

While he hasn't reached those heights so far with Barcelona it would be unfair to classify him as a failure and blame him for the problems that have beset the team in 2019-20.

In 2019-20, Antoine Griezmann has made 44 appearances for the club and scored 15 goals. He also has four assists to his name. This is an average of a goal or an assist every 175 minutes.

This is significantly worse than during his time at Atletico Madrid, however there have unquestionably been some extenuating circumstances.

Antoine Griezmann is part of a transition period

In only 18 of those games has Antoine Griezmann completed the full 90 minutes, which has made it more difficult for the Frenchman to adapt to the demands of his new team, and find any real rhythm or momentum.

He has also predominantly had to play in a position which is unfamiliar to him. Although a left-footed player, he played as either a central striker, second striker or on the right side of the attack during his time at Athletico Madrid.

Unfortunately for Antoine Griezmann, he has been unable to play in his stronger position for much of this season as they are the areas favoured by Messi and Suarez so he has had to adapt to playing down the left hand side of the trio.

It should also be taken into consideration that he has joined a team in a state of transition. Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez are now 33 and 34 respectively and while Messi in particular has still been excellent this season he is not the player he once was, while injuries have started to take their toll on Suarez.

The overall age profile of the squad itself is also the wrong side of 30. Clearly a sizeable rebuilding job is in order.

The situation with the management of the team hasn't helped. Ernesto Valverde was sacked in January, despite the team being at the top of the table and replaced by Quique Setien. The decision has proven to be a poor one.

A team with such a plethora of attacking talent has also shown a surprising lack of cutting edge, resulting in three frustrating draws since the return of La Liga which has seen Real Madrid pull clear in the battle for the league title. Antoine Griezmann shares his part in this, but much of the blame lies with an ageing midfield, showing an uncharacteristic lack of creativity.

So what of Antoine Griezmann? He needs to improve but there have undoubtedly been signs of his confidence returning, with evidence of that a beautiful chip in the recent 4-1 thrashing of Villarreal.

With transfer business likely to be fairly minimal this summer and with a contract until 2024, there will be further opportunity for Antoine Griezmann to establish himself properly at Barcelona and display the immense talent he displayed during his time with Atletico Madrid, which marked him out as one of the best footballers in the world.

It is surely only a matter of time before he does so.