Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman has hit out at Antoine Griezmann following his comments on what his preferred role in the team is. The Dutch manager added more fuel to claims of a rift existing between them by stating that he is the man "in charge" and, as a result, will only make decisions that he deems favorable to the club.
The former head coach of the Netherlands national team made the proclamation before his side suffered a shocking 1-0 defeat at Getafe - a game in which Griezmann received a lot of stick for his inefficiency in attack. During the international break, the former Atletico Madrid star expressed dissatisfaction with being played out of position at Barca but despite being deployed in his preferred No. 10 role on Saturday, he failed to take advantage of the opportunity.
Griezmann, who is yet to score in the new season, was subsequently replaced in the 80th-minute by Francisco Trincao as Barcelona fell to their first loss of the season. His manager Ronald Koeman who was critical of his side's second-half showing at Getafe, declared ahead of the encounter that the responsibility for team tactics lies within his purview.
"The coach is in charge and the players must be at their best when they play," he said.
"I have spoken with Antoine and I told him that I'm looking out for what is best for the team. I think he's most effective on the right for us.
"He can play in three positions. He could also play as a No 10 or a No 9.
"In fact, when I was the Netherlands boss, in a game against France, he played on the right against us – which is the same at Barcelona.
"I have no problem with Antoine. I can only play one player in each of the three attacking positions. I do not play any players out of position."
Following the suprise defeat at Getafe, Koeman reiterated his words again, saying: ""Griezmann? I've said many times that we have a lot of quality up front and the players can play in more than one position.Today we put Griezmann at 9, it's important to be able to make those changes."
