“They have to weigh themselves before getting on the horse each race. They have so many restrictions. They spend days without eating or drinking water, because they can’t risk gaining weight, all of which will only make it much more painful when they have to get on the horse; their knees will hurt a lot during the race. I respect them so much.”
Irrespective of his light-hearted, nice-guy image, Griezmann loves the tough sportsmen and women. He loves those who work until they simply can’t do any more — for victory. He adores those who sacrifice not just for wages, glory, fame or even trophies, but for the outright love of what they do.
Another example is his devotion to basketball and its stars. Griezmann loves the trash talk that abounds, the constant trying to get in one another’s heads, but knows football is too prissy for that to translate. What he does equate from the sport he most loves to the one he plays best is the need to create space and to tolerate pain and exhaustion.
“It must be tough for them to play every two or three days, travelling from … New York to Minnesota or California for a game,” Griezmann said. “That must be very tough mentally, as well as physically. They often clash, and are susceptible to knee and heel injuries, which is why you frequently see them with ice packs in every game.
“When you watch basketball on TV, the court seems incredibly large, but when you are courtside you realise how small it all is. You have to find ways to create space for the shooter to score.
“Ultimately, that’s what we try to do in football, but more so from corners or set plays or a free kick. We look to create space for whoever is going to shoot. There are things you can learn from basketball and apply to football, especially when it comes to having patience in those key moments of a match and keeping a cool head in order to think properly about a play and execute it well.”
Ladies and gentlemen, Antoine Griezmann: LaLiga’s player of the season who keeps moving forward, keeps seeking creative space, keeps entertaining us.
