Antoine Griezmann enjoyed his Barcelona debut today on Tuesday but what should have been a joyous game for the Frenchman could have turned into a disaster for both him and the club.
The Frenchman was on the receiving end of a horrendous two-footed tackle in the International Champions Cup clash with Chelsea. It might have been friendly, but one Blues player did not shy away from putting in a tackle that could get someone sent off any time of the day.
That man was none other than Jorginho. With the ball to be one, both the Frenchman and Italian lunge to gain possession but the Premier League midfielder went in two-footed with his studs up, clattering into the World Cup winner.
Surprisingly, he escaped unpunished, without even a booking for a lunge that probably deserved red. The Catalan giants were awarded the free-kick but Griezmann was left needing treatment.
That was a nasty challenge from Jorginho. They both went in sliding, but Jorginho had his studs up and went right at Griezmann. #FCBarcelona #CFC #FCBCHE #RakutenCup
— College-educated, Coastal Liberal Elite (@NaderHussein10) July 23, 2019
What a laughably-bad tackle that was by Jorginho on Griezmann.
— Kevin Kostka (@mpbx3003) July 23, 2019
#CHEBAR
— Mikey (@TrueBlue_Mikey) July 23, 2019
Ooooo Jorginho on Griezmann pic.twitter.com/kZ8jBd6dFP
Jorginho lunged in on Antoine Griezmann in the early stages of the game pic.twitter.com/iC5lfM3Xyp
— Lilian Chan (@bestgug) July 23, 2019
Fortunately, the summer signing got up to his feet shortly afterward and was able to continue the game. The former Atletico Madrid man was lucky to come out unhurt, as Ernesto Valverde will be eager to have his marquee signing available for the beginning of the season.
The game did not go as planned for the Blaugrana. They suffered a 2-1 defeat but the loss isn't cause for much alarm as pre-season matches are commonly treated 90-minutes affairs to get players fit for the new campaign.
