Barcelona forward faces abuse for Messi's departure

There were depressing scenes in Barcelona on Thursday and Friday, as inconsolable fans visited the stadium and the club's training facility to express their grief about the confirmation of Lionel Messi's departure. Unfortunately for Antoine Griezmann, he was at the receiving end of some of the fans' anger and frustration over what happened.

On Thursday, the Catalan giants officially confirmed that Messi's new contract can't be finalized due to their inability to comply with La Liga Santander's financial fair play regulations. Most fans expressed their disgust and disappointment on social media, after Barcelona president Joan Laporta failed to make good on his promise to keep the Argentine at the club. However, some fans felt the need to visit the club's facilities to be able to express themselves in person.

Former president Josep Maria Bartomeu also received a lot of criticism, but naturally, fans are frustrated about not being able to reach both him and Laporta directly. As a result, many have turned their attention towards Griezmann.

Antoine Griezmann is currently the club's highest earner after the departure of Messi, and it was widely reported that he was put up for sale this summer. The move was meant to free up room in the salary cap, which could have led the way to Messi's renewal.

However, a transfer deal did not materialise, after Barcelona failed to come to an agreement on a swap deal with La Liga champions Atletico Madrid. Because of this, the club was not able to free itself of Griezmann's salary, in turn leaving the club with no choice but to let go of Messi. Griezmann received abuse from fans who had gathered outside the Joan Gamper Sports City complex on Friday, as he was going in and out for training.

"He has left because of you," they shouted, as quoted by Marca.

Griezmann had reportedly agreed to leave the club, but only if his next destination is his former club, Atletico. However, the Blaugrana refused to accept a swap deal for Saul Niguez, demanding more from the champions despite their desperate situation.

In the end, Griezmann will stay, and Messi has been forced to end his 21-year affiliation with the club.