It's all due to financial problems. Xavi explained why Barcelona sold a star player to a competitor

Barcelona's head coach Xavi Hernandez explained why the Catalan club sold French winger Antoine Griezmann to Atlético.

According to the Blaugrana coach, the main reason for selling the player was the club's unstable financial situation.

“We decided to let Antoine Griezmann leave just because of the financial situation, the club had to let him go. Griezmann is a player that I like a lot, but he left for that reason”, - Xavi said.

It is worth recalling that Barcelona bought Griezmann from Atlético for 120 million euros in 2019. However, just two years later, the Frenchman went back on loan in the opposite direction. Last summer, the mattress makers permanently bought out the player's contract for 22 million euros.

In the current season, Griezmann has scored 19 goals and provided 7 assists in 37 matches for the Madrid team. After 28 rounds, Atlético sits in fourth place in La Liga, trailing Barcelona in third by six points.