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Barcelona deny any wrongdoing over Antoine Griezmann signing

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu insists that there is "no evidence" of any wrongdoing in their pursuit of Antoine Griezmann from Atletico Madrid.

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has claimed that there is "no evidence" of any wrongdoing in his side's pursuit of Antoine Griezmann.

The Spanish champions last week confirmed that they had triggered Griezmann's £107m release clause at Atletico Madrid, and the Frenchman was unveiled at his new club on Monday.

However, shortly after Barcelona had announced the transfer Atletico claimed that they were owed an extra €80m (£72.1m) as they believe an agreement was reached as far back as March.

Griezmann's release clause only dropped to £107m on July 1, and Atletico argue that they are due the previous figure of €200m (£179m) as a deal was finalised before the start of this month.

The Madrid outfit have threatened legal action against Barcelona, but Bartomeu insists that they have done nothing wrong.

"I have spoken to them, but I do not think there is any proof, because there is no evidence of anything," Bartomeu told reporters at Griezmann's presentation.

"I understand everyone defends their interests and I've spoken to [Enrique] Cerezo [Atletico president], but I don't see that the case can evolve in a positive way for them. There's nothing.

"We contacted Griezmann after he made the video saying goodbye to the fans, there was nothing in March."

Griezmann's first appearance in a Barcelona shirt could come against Chelsea in their opening pre-season match next Tuesday.

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Barney Corkhill
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Antoine Griezmann is unveiled as a Barcelona player on July 13, 2019
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Atletico MadridAtletico20135234132144
2Real Madrid19134243192443
3Barcelona20123552232939
4Athletic Bilbao19106329171236
5Villarreal198653431330
6Mallorca199371921-230
7Real Sociedad198471713428
8GironaGirona208482827128
9Sevilla207582329-626
10Rayo Vallecano196762222025
11Real BetisBetis206772226-425
12Osasuna196762328-525
13Celta Vigo197392830-224
14Las PalmasLas Palmas196492429-522
15Leganes205781929-1022
16Getafe204881417-320
17AlavesAlaves2055102432-820
18Espanyol2054111932-1319
19Real ValladolidValladolid2043131439-2515
20Valencia1927101829-1113


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