Lionel Messi against PSG's decision to sign ex-Barcelona star with whom his relationship is 'broken' – Reports
Lionel Messi is reportedly against Luis Campos’ and PSG’s intentions to sign former Barcelona forward Antoine Griezmann.
According to El Nacional, Campos has identified Griezmann as a potential striker who can fulfill both Christopher Galtier and Nasser Al-Khelaifi’s requirements. However, Messi, who previously played with the French striker at Barcelona, reportedly isn't on the best terms with him.
According to the aforementioned report, Lionel Messi does not even want to hear about the prospect of teaming up with the Frenchman again. Griezmann had initially refused to sign for Barcelona despite the Argentine supporting the prospect of signing him publicly.
Antoine Griezmann loves playing alongside Lionel Messi 😄
🗣️ "You send Messi a melon, he turns it into caviar!" [L'Equipe] https://t.co/0KUxdKLFHc
Furthermore, following a lack of understanding with Lionel Messi on the field, the French striker's entourage had accused him of causing a problem. His uncle had even claimed in an interview that Barcelona did not work hard at training sessions and only wanted to please “certain players.”
Still, PSG have reportedly started the process of signing Griezmann despite being faced with a peculiar position with respect to his contract situation.
PSG and Luis Campos begin process of signing Antoine Griezmann despite Lionel Messi disapproval
Griezmann is on loan at Atletico from Barcelona. However, Diego Simeone’s club has the rights to the player until June 2023 and Barcelona will require the go-ahead of Atletico to sanction the sale. While Simeone prefers Alvaro Morata to leave rather than Griezmann, he might be forced to budge.
This is because Atletico will have to compulsorily sign the striker if he meets certain requirements. Moreover, they will be able to re-enter the transfer market by getting rid of the striker, who earns a huge salary. Also, not many clubs apart from PSG are willing to offer the €35 million Barcelona have asked for.
Galtier wants to sign a striker and recently said the following during a press conference:
“We want a new striker. The club is working very hard. I am in direct contact with Luis Campos about this. We must not make any mistakes.”
#Messi𓃵 , #Mbappe and #Neymar train ahead of PSG's match with Montpellier - in pictures 📸 #PSG
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However, PSG missed out on signing multiple strikers who made big moves this summer, including the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Erling Haaland and Robert Lewandowski. Galtier reportedly does not want Cristiano Ronaldo or Alvaro Morata to be signed. The manager wants a striker who is efficient and can also work hard.
PSG are also supportive of the idea of signing the striker as they want to add French players, especially in the year of the World Cup.