Atletico Madrid's Antoine Griezmann equals Lionel Messi in La Liga history books - but former club Barcelona sour occasion for World Cup winner

Griezmann is a legend of La Liga and is soon to stand at the top of the appearance charts when it comes to non-Spanish players in the division. After being named in the starting XI for the crucial league match against Barcelona, he made his 520th outing in the top flight, matching the iconic Messi.

The Frenchman starred alongside Messi at Barca between 2019 and 2022, but has played his best football at Atletico, where he hopes to win his maiden La Liga title under Diego Simeone. He is already a Europa League, Spanish Super Cup and UEFA Super Cup winner with Los Colchoneros, and has hit 197 goals across his two spells for the Madrid-based club.

At 33, Griezmann is still flying at the top level. In the 2024-25 campaign, the former Barcelona ace has bagged 16 goals and notched seven assists, and is on course to match his respective tallies from last term. However, Atletico's title hopes suffered a major blow on Sunday as they suffered a 4-2 defeat to Barca, despite taking a two-goal lead in the match.

The World Cup winner has been linked with a move away from Spain at the end of the season. His contract runs until the summer of 2026, but there are strong rumours circulating about a potential move to the MLS, with Messi's Inter Miami among the clubs to have been linked with his services.