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After the debacle at Anfield, the Catalan giants have gone into damage limitation mode. It wouldn't be wrong to say that they are throwing money at problems. A club of their stature is expected to contest for all trophies in a season, but instead, they choked a 3 goal lead for the second time in a row.
As the pressure on Barcelona's board mounts, it seems they are trying to fix problems, whether they exist or not. One of the solutions that people always expect is to deliver a big name signing. That's exactly what the board headed by Josep Bartomeu has up their sleeve, and the person they have found is another Frenchman.
According to various sources, Barcelona has Griezmann on their radar, which adds him to the likes of Dembele, Umtiti, Todibo, in terms of the French contingent. A look at the bigger picture puts him among the likes of Thierry Henry and Eric Abidal, two people who had tremendous success here.
We look at 3 reasons why Antoine Griezmann would be worth every single penny.
#3 A world-class player by every stretch of the imagination
Like him or not, Antoine Griezmann's talent is among that of the top brass of players. It just happens that he is a bit vocal and demands respect, which is not appreciated by the majority of football fans. But looking at him, he has managed to carry Atleti's attack all on his own. He has had mediocre teammates in Costa, Morata, Kalinic, who haven't been of any help.
The defensive setup of Atleti demands a lot more from Griezmann than just attack. He has to track back and defend, recover balls, dribble all the way from the midfield to the front, score and assist. Still, he has managed to get 15 goals and 9 assists, while having minimal help.
Barcelona is definitely an upgrade for him, and with Suarez nearing 33 years, Griezmann is a younger solution who will stay for about 5 to 6 seasons. The advantage of having him over other youngsters is that he is tried and tested at the biggest level. Added to that, he'll not block long-term replacements from La Masia which can be the case with up and coming talents.
#2 Griezmann provides a boxload of tactical options
To compete for all the trophies, Barcelona need to have more than just one tactical setup, which seemingly is the case right now. Erik Ten Hag has two different setups for Eredivisie and the Champions League, and Barcelona need something like that too.
Griezmann could himself cover all three positions in the forward line and also the additional position of the second-striker. With him, Barcelona can have three different setups in a 4-3-3. The most popular being Griezmann-Suarez-Messi, in a 4-3-3, but it can have a lot of varieties, with Dembele playing down the left and Griezmann in the middle in the same formation.
If required, Barcelona can also move Messi into the attacking midfield spot and accommodate Dembele-Griezmann-Suarez in the forward line. If Barcelona want to try out a 4-4-2, they can do so with Dembele or Coutinho as wide midfielders on the left and Messi on the right. Or they can have Messi as a false 9 in a 4-3-3 due to Griezmann's comfort while playing down the middle. There can also be a 4-2-3-1 formation with Messi as CAM with Suarez as a striker, or Coutinho as CAM with Griezmann as a striker.
A diamond formation, 4-3-1-2, with Messi as the tip of the diamond, is also a very lethal tactic.
Need more?
#1 The intimidation factor: Rise of another trident?
We know how much havoc Messi, Neymar, and Suarez caused as a trio. Ever since the Brazilian left for greener pastures, the intimidation factor is no longer there. Despite Philippe Coutinho's inclusion, the inconsistent performances and the adjustment concerns are not helping.
Anyone who faces Barcelona knows that Messi is the source. Suarez has lost a lot of ball control and pace, Dembele has been in and out of the team, and Coutinho is lost at the moment. Bringing Griezmann gives Barcelona a second source of creation up front. Messi doesn't always have to drop deep and create, or at least he won't have to do both creating and scoring. Griezmann, being a fantastic dribbler, can run from deep and kickstart counter attacks, and also score on his own.
When you pair Messi with such a lethal player, and when you reduce Suarez's workload on defense, it helps the team a lot. Griezmann can create, defend, and score. When teams look at the team sheet and look at the front three, there will be an intimidating look. It gives teams an extra bit to think about. How do you stop both of them? How do you stop linkups? A link-up is always tough to tackle when compared to a single player.
In all honesty, not many were able to solve the MSN dilemma, and the SMG trio can be as lethal, if not more. Or maybe MGD if you take Suarez out and include Dembele. Both are names of sub-machine guns, and the trio will be nothing short of an all-out assault.
