Barcelona president says forward was 'not needed' after completing deadline day deal

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has justified Antoine Greizmann's exit this summer, by stating that the forward did not "fit the system." He also spoke about the deal agreed between Atletico Madrid and the Catalan club that will see Griezmann join his former club on a permanent basis next summer.

Barcelona were desperate to slash their wage bill, and with Griezmann having been the second highest earner behind Lionel Messi, he was made available for transfer. Initially, the La Liga giants were in advanced talks with Atletico about a swap deal involving Saul Niguez, but the deal broke down in the final stages of negotiations.

In the end, not only did Barcelona lose Messi to Paris Saint-Germain, they also allowed Griezmann to join Atletico on transfer deadline day on a season-long loan deal. The Catalan outfit, for a second straight summer, have strengthened their direct rivals for the La Liga title.

Laporta was not overly concerned about Griezmann joining their rivals. He claimed that the France international was not a player the club needed as he did not fit into their system. He even revealed the condition that needs to be met in order for his deal to become permanent at the end of the 2021-22 campaign.

"We all know what kind of player he is, I think that in our system he does not fit, but his attitude has always been very good, but surely he was not the player we needed," Laporta said in an interview with Onze, as quoted on Barca Blaugranes.

"Griezmann must play 50% of the matches he can take part in for the purchase option of Atletico to become mandatory," the Barcelona president added about the clause in the loan deal.

Griezmann was also keen to end his £107 million Barcelona nightmare and according to Goal, the 2018 World Cup winner agreed to take a 40 percent pay cut to return to the Wanda Metropolitano this summer. The 30-year-old joined the Catalan club in 2019, but failed to replicate the form he showed during his time with the reigning La Liga champions.

Atletico will pay Barcelona €40 million (£34.3m) including add-ons to make the deal permanent next summer. The Madrid outfit also have the option to extend his loan by a further year if Barcelona agree, but it will require certain payments to complete the deal.