France and Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann has opened up about his relationship with his stunning wife, Erika Choperena, before she agreed to date him.
Griezmann, who completed a permanent switch from Barcelona to Atletico last month, first met his wife in San Sebastian when he was starting out at Real Sociedad.
The 2018 World Cup winner started dating the 32-year-old Choperena in 2011 before they tied the knot in 2017, and the pair have had three children together.
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Choperena, who is a qualified child psychologist, was spotted cheering her husband on at the previous World Cup in Russia, as Griezmann and Co lifted the trophy with France.
Griezmann revealed that he often crossed paths with Choperena due to the school she was studying at, which was close to where he was training as a footballer.
The 31-year-old French forward added that they started texting and he spent a “year and a half” trying to “seduce her” before Choperena agreed to date.
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“Erika was studying in a school next to where I trained, we crossed roads a couple of times and we began to text each other,” Griezmann said in his autobiography.
“For a year and a half, I sent her messages, I tried to seduce her.”
Griezmann is in his second spell with Atletico after his ill-fated spell with Barcelona, with the Frenchman initially returning to the Wanda Metropolitano on loan.
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The former Barcelona player, who arrived at the Camp Nou in a sensational £108m deal in 2019, has scored six times in 21 appearances for Atletico this season.
Despite his disappointing spell at Barcelona, Griezmann remains an important part of Diego Simeone’s plans as Atletico push for a Champions League spot this season.
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France manager Didier Deschamps called up Griezmann for his side’s title defence at the World Cup in Qatar.
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Griezmann has started both of France’s Group D matches and picked up an assist in the defending world champions’ 2-1 win over Denmark on Saturday.
Topics: Antoine Griezmann, Football
Adnan Riaz