Striker Antoine Griezmann gave an emotional farewell speech at the Metropolitano, ending his Atletico Madrid adventure on a night filled with apologies, gratitude and celebration.
The French striker openly revisited his 2019 departure to Barcelona and apologized to fans again.
“First, thank you for staying. This is incredible. Second, and something very important to me: I know many did and some still don’t, but I apologize again. I didn’t realize how much love I had here. I was too young. I made a mistake, I thought about it, and we did everything to come back and enjoy it again.”
He then thanked the technical staff, especially Diego Simeone, while also praising his teammate, Koke.
“To the staff and the man who changed everything at this club: Don Diego Pablo Simeone. Thanks to you there is a lot of ambition and I became world champion and felt like the best in the world. I owe you a lot and it was an honor to fight for you. I don’t know if I’m a legend, but you, Koke, are a legend of this club.”
Reflecting on what he failed to win with Atletico, Griezmann admitted that he misses a league title and the Champions League, but stressed that the love of the fans is more valuable.
“I haven’t managed to bring a championship title or a Champions League, but this love is worth more to me. I will take it with me for the rest of my life.”
