Diego Simeone hoping to keep Antoine Griezmann

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone remains hopeful that Antoine Griezmann will decide to stay with the club this summer.

The France international has been heavily linked with a move to Barcelona, with the Catalan giants said to be prepared to activate the attacker's £87m release clause at the end of the season.

Simeone said that Atletico "want the best" for the 27-year-old, who has scored 26 times in 42 appearances during the 2017-18 campaign.

"We want the best for Griezmann. I hope we can make him see that the team will continue to grow. The greatest thing for a footballer is to see that things are growing and that they're real, not just words," Simeone told reporters.

"We're fighting with Barca, we have the chance of the Europa League final... good things have happened every year. We have to give him all the tools so that he's inclined to continue improving here, when he has to decide."

Griezmann has also previously been strongly linked with a move to Manchester United.