Thomas Siniecki, Media365: published on Wednesday, March 25, 2026 at 10:56 pm
The adventure of the unknown player in America doesn’t look easy. He will have to work hard on the field to make Orlando shine.
Antoine Griezmann is going to live his American dream, but has he really looked into the football aspect? Our local colleagues at ESPN warn of the sports quagmire that the top scorer in the history of Atletico Madrid could find in Florida, within a struggling franchise. After five matches, Orlando is currently in thirteenth place in the Eastern Conference, out of fifteen teams, with the worst goal difference in the entire Major League Soccer (-12). They also have another unfortunate record to go with it, having conceded 40 shots on target. Their latest match? A 5-0 defeat to Nashville.
“I perceived a strong ambition and a clear vision of the future, it really appealed to me”
Coach Oscar Pareja was fired after three matches, following the departure of four key players, goalkeeper Pedro Gallese, striker Luis Muriel (formerly of Udinese, Sampdoria, Sevilla, or Atalanta), central defender Rodrigo Schlegel, and right-back Alex Freeman. This allowed space for Antoine Griezmann’s salary, but at what cost…
“Excited to start this new chapter,” Antoine Griezmann is playing it “corporate” for now: “From my initial exchanges with the club, I perceived a strong ambition and a clear vision of the future, and it really appealed to me.” The immediate future, the one he will find upon arriving mid-season, may not necessarily involve playoff ambitions… Unless he can find other reinforcements that, in four months, will be sufficient to boost this team. Where Heung-Min Son and Thomas Müller came as a cherry on top at Los Angeles FC and Vancouver, this is not the case for Antoine Griezmann, seen as the cornerstone of a new project. But at 35 years old, does he have the time and the desire?
