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Two goals on his competitive home debut helped lead Barcelona into the light against Betis at the Camp Nou
Antoine Griezmann had watched the best and wanted to do what they do. And so, when the ball came to him just to the right side of the area 50 minutes into his Camp Nou debut for Barcelona, he did. Pausing for a moment, he looked up and curled it into the corner, bending past the goalkeeper’s hand and in by the post. If the shot was familiar, the foot wasn’t. “I see Messi do it in training and I copied him,” the Frenchman said afterwards. Beaten in Bilbao on the opening night, Barcelona had been 1-0 down to Betis, darkness descending, doubts deepening, judgments served and sentences signed, but now he’d scored twice to lead them into the light. All the pressure, gone. And a little more emulation to come.
When he scored the first, sliding in to volley Sergi Roberto’s delivery, Griezmann had clenched his fists, booted the ball into the air, and headed back to the centre, letting it out and urging them on. He’d promised a special celebration for his first Camp Nou goal, saying he had a surprise for them, but with the game in the balance the time wasn’t right, not yet; when he got his second, 2-1 up, on course for a victory which changed everything, it was. “If I have to say sorry, I’ll do it on the pitch,” he’d insisted at his presentation, aware that he hadn’t exactly arrived with everyone’s blessing. By 10.15pm on Sunday night he’d done that, forgiveness granted fast. Time to fulfil a promise. He’d been planning this for a while. Continue reading...