Barcelona Transfer News: Samuel Umtiti in 'Agent Mode' to Lure Antoine Griezmann

Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti has said he's entered "agent mode" in an attempt to convince Atletico Madrid forward and France team-mate Antoine Griezmann to join him in Catalonia. 

The Blaugrana have held strong links with Griezmann over the past year, and Umtiti said he and his international team-mate have spoken about a potential switch ahead of the summer transfer window, per Goal's Stephen Darwin:

"With Griezmann, I put myself in agent mode! It's true that we talk a lot about it, but it was just to know what he thinks of Barca. If he comes, we will play with six attackers!"

Umtiti touched upon the notion that Griezmann's arrival would create an attacking imbalance at Barca, with seemingly no room to fit him in. However, Sid Lowe of The Spanish Football Podcast allayed those fears last month, suggesting the room would be made if the chance is there to recruit him:

The Sun (h/t TalkSport) recently reported Barca had agreed a deal to sign Griezmann for the full value of his €100 million (£88 million) release clause, beating alleged suitors Manchester United to his signature.

That being said, a combination of a mismatch in tactics and the already overcrowded Barca front line has led Squawka's Muhammad Butt to believe Griezmann would be a poor allocation of funds for Barcelona:

"

I really can’t understand the Griezmann move. he’s not good enough to start and rotating a player of his quality can only last for a season (and he’s not a no. 9 so can’t replace Suárez).

— Muhammad Butt (@muhammadbutt) April 1, 2018"

The former Real Sociedad star had a slow start to this season but now has 23 goals to his name in all competitions, including a streak of 12 goals in his last 10 La Liga games.

Mundo Deportivo (h/t Sport Witness) dissected the playing prospects for Griezmann in the event he were to move to the Camp Nou, none of which include replacing Suarez as the out-and-out striker:

Umtiti, 24, has established himself as a key figure at the Camp Nou since arriving from Lyon in 2016, and he'll be hoping to do so alongside Griezmann in the international set-up in the years to come.

Speculation has been building since Griezmann came close to moving to Old Trafford last summer, per TalkSport, and even team-mate Koke recently seemed resigned to losing his team-mate, per Yahoo Sport UK:

While Umtiti may be doing his utmost to bring Griezmann to the Camp Nou, there's an enticing presence at Old Trafford in Paul Pogba, a friend of the Atleti talisman.

But Pogba cannot offer the same silverware prospects in Manchester that Umtiti can in Catalonia, which may be the deciding factor.