Antoine Griezmann has stopped speaking to French media outlets since his departure from the French national team, declining to grant interviews to reporters from his home country during a trip to Florida, according to Téléfoot.
The Florida Encounter and the Five-Hour Wait
While shooting a feature on his new life in Orlando, a crew from the French broadcast Téléfoot tracked down the Atletico Madrid forward after a training session. Griezmann greeted the reporter cordially but quickly set firm boundaries regarding his availability for interviews.
👀 GRIEZMANN GARDE SES DISTANCES AVEC LA PRESSE FRANÇAISE !Depuis son arrivée aux États-Unis, Antoine Griezmann se fait discret auprès des médias français. 🇫🇷🎙️@YassinNfaoui pic.twitter.com/VAd6ggixie
“I am happy. I am on the road now. It was my dream. […] I am very happy, man. Thanks for coming anyway. I’m loving it so much,” Griezmann told the crew, according to Foot Mercato’s reporting. When informed that the journalist had waited five hours for the brief exchange, the player elaborated on his stance: “I am sorry, but I don’t want to talk. I don’t want to talk to anyone anymore. It’s against no one.”
Lizarazu Questions the Media Blackout
The forward’s ongoing silence toward French journalists has drawn public scrutiny from former national team player and television consultant Bixente Lizarazu. Speaking on the situation, Lizarazu pointed to the challenging conclusion of France’s campaign at Euro 2024 and Griezmann’s subsequent decision to step away from Les Bleus in September 2024 as potential catalysts for lingering frustration.
“We get the impression that there is a little bit of rancor over that difficult end at Euro 2024,” Lizarazu said of the situation. “Then he announced that he had stopped with the France team. He doesn’t want to talk to French journalists. Anyway, I just want to tell him that no matter what happens, he is a legend of the France team, of French football, and that the supporters adore him and that it’s a shame to deprive yourself of that. Because if he’s angry at someone, but not at us, there’s no reason. Talk to us Antoine, talk to us.”
