Antoine Griezmann apologized to Atletico Madrid supporters on Sunday during his final appearance at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano, asking fans to forgive the choice that took him away in 2019 and making one last on-field contribution in a 1-0 win.
Griezmann, the 35-year-old forward who spent a 10-year career across two spells with Atletico Madrid, provided the assist for the only goal as Atletico beat Girona 1-0. He used his postgame address to lay out what he called a personal mistake and to acknowledge the bond he says he now understands with the club's supporters.
On the pitch and in the speech, he was plain. "Please forgive me. I was young, and I made a mistake in joining Barcelona," Griezmann told the crowd in his final home appearance for Atletico. He followed that with a second, reflective line: "I did not understand the love I had here. I recognized my mistake and did everything to come back and enjoy it here."
The numbers underline the moment: a 1-0 result, an assist by the departing No. 7, and a farewell addressed to a stadium where he has been both idol and, for a time, a man who left. The assist in Sunday's match was the immediate proof that he could still shape an outcome for Atletico even as his next move is already set.
Context matters and it comes after the weight of the game: Griezmann left Atletico for Barcelona in 2019, returned for a second spell, and now will leave again, this time for Major League Soccer. The farewell speech at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano capped the home portion of that final chapter; his departure to Orlando City is scheduled for the summer.
He did not treat trophies as the measure of reconciliation. "I didn’t win LaLiga or the UEFA Champions League, but your love is what matters," Griezmann said, turning the focus from silverware to the crowd that has cheered him through departures and returns. That line reframed the night: a small statistic in the history books, a large moment in the club's living memory.
The friction in this story is simple and human. Fans can cheer a player who scores or assists, but they also remember the decision to leave. Griezmann's apology and his final assist sit next to each other uneasily — his on-field contribution did not erase the fact of his earlier departure, yet his words asked for, and appeared to receive, forgiveness. The gap between lost chances for trophies and regained affection is the tension Atletico fans have been negotiating since 2019.
Griezmann's move to Orlando City will be watched as a farewell to the competitive peaks of European football and the start of a new chapter in Major League Soccer. For Atletico, the club leaves behind a player whose career with them spans a decade in total and whose public reckoning on Sunday was about more than one match: it was about identity, regret and return.
He closed by underlining what he now values most, a message that will follow him to the United States: the personal bond. After the final whistle and the goodbyes inside the stadium, that bond — and whether it endures in memory more than in trophies — may be the most enduring measure of what Griezmann leaves behind.
Readers who watched him start in the Metropolitano farewell match can find the match report here: Atlético Madrid Vs Girona: Griezmann starts in Metropolitano farewell match ( Earlier coverage of his final run of games and the coach's response is available at Antoine Griezmann to play final Atletico matches as Simeone pays tribute (
