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After two consecutive Copa América finals, in which Chile robbed Lionel Messi of the opportunity to lift an important title with Argentina, the signing of Arturo Vidal by Barcelona raised some doubts. Not because of his football, successful at Bayern and Juventus, but because of his adaptation to the dressing room led by Messi, his rival in South America. The uncertainty quickly dissipated. The charismatic Vidal earned the trust of Messi and Luis Suárez. The Chilean is a regular guest at the asados organized by the Argentine and the Uruguayan in Castelldefels. It is not strange that Alba and Busquets join, nor Griezmann, who has been a member of the Barça group for a long time. “Arturo feels like one of the important people in the group. He is highly respected and loved by heavyweights and as long as he plays he is happy. His problem is when he spends a lot of time on the bench ”, they tell from the Chilean midfielder, 33 years old.
Vidal is easy to decipher. He is transparent, vehement in his anger, euphoric in his joys. After ruling out leaving Barcelona - Antonio Conte had been tempting him to join Inter - the Chilean decided to stay at the Camp Nou. He was not very satisfied with the minutes that Valverde had given him: 53 games, 54% as a starter. However, he felt that he had emerged strengthened from the catastrophic duel against Liverpool (4-0), when Barça squandered a three-goal lead in the tie. "Arturo was the only one who showed his face at Anfield," they assured, at the time, from Valverde's coaching staff. The confidence of Txingurri, the affection of Messi and, above all, his desire to raise the Orejona made him decide to stay one more season at the Camp Nou.
On his multi-featured back, where he basically has references to his family and the story of his progress in life, Vidal saves corners for his career achievements. Campione , was recorded after being crowned in Italy, when he was voted the best footballer of the year by the Gazzetta dello Spor t in 2013.
Denounce to Barça
The Copa América was painted with the flag of his country in 2015. But it has a reserved place. "I keep that, I have saved it to tattoo the Champions," Vidal assures his group of friends. And the Chilean was clear that at the Camp Nou and with Messi in his team he was closer to painting the Orejona than if he moved to Giuseppe Meazza. This campaign was once again irregular for the Chilean. He started as a substitute (in the first five games he played 69 minutes). He denounced the club for what he considers a non-payment of a bonus - at Barça they consider that the contract was misinterpreted - and flirted with leaving the Camp Nou again in winter. But, as always, the Chilean manages to get into the eleven. He did it with Valverde and also with Setién. Chaotic, but omnipresent in the field: rebellious but cheerful in the dressing room, Vidal is vitamin at the Camp Nou. He is Barcelona's fourth highest scorer of the season (eight), after Messi (31), Luis Suárez (20) and Griezmann (15).
And as Griezmann changes good for bad in the starting eleven, Vidal is one of the options that Quique Setién manages to build a more physical team against Bayern. The Chilean already played as an offensive midfielder (Betis and Eibar) and also as a winger (Naples in San Paolo), always a help wheel in defense. “Quique is very likely to try a 4-4-2 against Bayern, with Arturo in the team. It is a system that they have already tried and with which Messi feels comfortable ”, they assure in the Sports City.
There is no better scenario or rival for Arturo Vidal. The Champions League is the only pending account that the Chilean has left. And if he does not get it at Barça (he has a contract until 2021), he does not rule out returning to Turin, now that his friend Pirlo has taken over the reins of Juve. Always obsessed with his fitness (he has a physical trainer who has been with him since he arrived in Europe), Vidal's idea is to stretch his career as much as possible. And get the European Cup tattooed.