5 reasons why Barcelona should not buy Antoine Griezmann

The Frenchman has been one of the finest discoveries by Atletico Madrid in recent years. A product of the Real Sociedad cantera, the 26-year-old moved to the Spanish Capital in 2014.

Scoring over 65 goals in 126 odd appearances for the Rojiblancos, Griezmann has shone brilliantly for both his club and his national team. A run of marvellous performances in 2016 saw the mercurial star being tipped to win the Ballon d'Or.

He has been phenomenal for Atletico but his stay at the Madrid club seems scheduled to end amidst reports of the Frenchman moving away from the club in the upcoming summer transfer window.

Griezmann is currently under a contract with Atletico Madrid that will keep him at the club until 2021 unless someone pays his relatively low €100m (£88.4m) release clause.

His ability on and off the ball has earned the left-footed forward interest from various top clubs all over Europe, including the likes of Manchester United and Barcelona.

However, with the Manchester club likely to finalize Alexis Sanchez's move, the Catalan capital looks to be the ideal destination for the Frenchman. A perfect destination to display his potential and earn recognition for the same, Griezmann is reportedly eager to join the ranks of Barcelona and play alongside Leo Messi.

Manchester City's interests in the forward and their hefty bank balance won't make his move to Catalonia easy. Nonetheless, it has already been reported that talks between the player's family members and the Barcelona board are already underway.

Atletico Madrid also officially reported Barcelona's intentions to FIFA. However, his potential big-money signing would put Barcelona even far adrift off their philosophy of producing talent from the famous La Masia, a thing Cules won't like.

Let's look at 5 reasons why Griezmann isn't the perfect fit for Barcelona;

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#1 Jose Arnaiz's development

Arnaiz made his league debut this month against Levante

The vibrant Spaniard capped off a dream start for the Barcelona first team in this year's Copa del Rey. Scoring three goals in his first three appearances for the club, the 22-year old is a young talent Ernesto Valverde is reportedly relying upon for the long-term and Griezmann's arrival in the summer is certainly going to put Arnaiz's development to a stand-still.

Also, as Arsenal are heavily linked with the Barcelona ace, the deal could be completed in the event of Griezmann arriving at the Nou Camp.

"The Segunda División is a tough league for a second team. I try to follow and watch Barça B whenever I can. We look at players who could be good for the first team, such as Aleñá, Oriol Busquets and Arnaiz, among others." - Ernesto Valverde

Valverde's recent trips to the Mini Estadi, where the B team plays sparked hopes of an imminent promotion among several players in the Barcelona B team, but if Griezmann's move is completed, even a promotion to the first team would be virtually useless given the Frenchman's abilities.

There are certainly a lot of players in the Second Division, including Arnaiz, who are eagerly waiting for their chance to don the Barcelona jersey with the first team.

#2 Huge Squad List

Ernesto Valverde is reportedly bothered by a huge squad at the Catalan club

While Ernesto Valverde has already announced publicly that he isn't fond of extensive squad lists and wants to cut the list, Barcelona's problems of shredding weight off their bench have been severe.

"I like small squads. You don't have to exclude many players [from a match squad], and you can give opportunities to B team players." - Ernesto Valverde

While players like Gerard Deulofeu, Aleix Vidal, Javier Mascherano, and Rafinha being regarded as 'deadweights', a move regarding any of them hasn't reached a conclusion.

Several players have been linked with moves away from the Camp Nou, but none, except a loan-move for Arda Turan, have found their way out of Ernesto Valverde's team and Griezmann's arrival would only add another peg on Valverde's board.

#3 Huge Wage Bill

FC Barcelona President Josep Maria Bartomeu

According to reports, Barcelona has offered the Frenchman a deal worth £425,000-a-week, the same as Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez and only behind Argentine ace Leo Messi, beating Manchester United's offer for Griezmann's services.

While the Catalans have been associated with low wage bills, partially owing to their La Masia system, in recent years, the bills at the Nou Camp have only gone higher.

Statistics showed that Barcelona reportedly spends over 75% of their annual budget only for the purposes of wages and salaries for the players and the staff.

Philippe Coutinho's and Ousmane Dembele's big-money arrivals spiked Barcelona's wage bill even further and with the Catalan club offering the Frenchman a tremendous amount of money, they could be in for some financial troubles.

#4 Financial Fair Play Regulations

Neymar's record-breaking move to Paris sparked a series of transfers involving the Blaugrana

Barcelona has had issues with FIFA/UEFA in the past and were hit with a transfer ban under Luis Enrique.

The Catalans haven't been traditionally linked with big-money transfers but Coutinho's and Dembele's transfer, reportedly involving over 280 million dollars invited criticism from the followers of Total Football, a philosophy the Catalan club built their legacy upon.

Griezmann's reported move would involve over $100m. The Blaugrana also purchased Paulinho and Yerry Mina, which puts the cumulative spending at a staggering $330m, and Antoine's arrival would push the figure past the $400m mark.

Barcelona's accounts could be investigated by the sport's governing bodies in case of another transfer involving a huge amount of money.

Atletico Madrid also officially reported Barcelona's actions and attempts of luring Griezmann away from the Spanish Capital to FIFA, and Barcelona could be severely booked for the same. Josep Maria Bartomeu, FC Barcelona's president, reportedly met Griezmann's representatives and his family at a restaurant in Catalonia.

#5 Griezmann's worrying form

Griezmann hasn't been at his best this season

The forward has been rather inconsistent ever since the news of Barcelona's interest in the Frenchman broke out.

Greeted by boos at the Wanda Metropolitano several times this season, he has only managed to score 5 goals this season for the Madrid club in 16 appearances, a worrying figure for the forward who scored 16 goals in the last campaign.

The former Real Sociedad man, who scored over 46 goals for the Basque club has looked a frustrated figure this season, being quite unlucky in-front of goal.

Deemed as a team player, his contributions to build-ups and tracking back to defend have been worrying.

According to the statistical website, Squawka, the Frenchman is ranked a lowly 30 in this season's player rankings in La Liga

With Luis Suarez back at his best and Coutinho ready to play for the Blaugrana, Antoine's potential contributions to the Barcelona system may not be worth the money being demanded.