Barcelona Transfer News: Blaugrana deny reports claiming they have already paid Griezmann's buyout clause

What's the story?

Barcelona have reportedly denied reports that they have paid Antoine Griezmann's €120 million buy-out clause on Thursday, 11th July.

In case you didn't know

A report in L'Equipe claimed that the Catalan giants have already deposited Griezmann's €120m buyout clause with La Liga on Thursday, thereby putting an end to a long and tedious transfer saga.

The narrative began last summer when the forward publicly rejected a move to Camp Nou following weeks of heavy speculation. Despite the humiliation, the Blaugrana have restarted their pursuit of the Frenchman this summer, with a move looking likely.

In the last few weeks, the World Cup winner's release clause has been the subject of much controversy as Atletico Madrid accused Barcelona of violating transfer rules by approaching the player and holding secret negotiations with him back in March. His buy-out clause was £171 million back then and has recently dropped down to £107 million.

Griezmann's failure to follow Atletico's instructions to return for pre-season training has further annoyed the club, who have opened disciplinary proceedings against him.

The heart of the matter

According to Sport English, sources close to Barcelona have rubbished reports that the club has already paid Griezmann's release clause, stating that the transfer is yet to be completed.

The club are currently working on the structure of the deal but reportedly expect the transfer to be completed very soon.

Griezmann remains in Ibiza where he is waiting for a call to head to Barcelona once the deal is completed.

What's next?

Griezmann is likely to make the move to Barcelona sooner rather than later but it remains to be seen when the club will make an official announcement.

Barcelona will begin their pre-season on July 14 before they play a friendly clash against Premier League outfit Chelsea on July 23.