Seventeen years later, Arturo Vidal is back at Colo-Colo, his training club in Chile.
For the occasion, the club from the Macul neighborhood in Santiago saw the big picture.
The international (36 years old, 142 caps) was presented with great fanfare at the Monumental David Arellano stadium, with an arrival by helicopter in the middle of the pitch.
Getting off the machine, the former midfielder for Bayern Munich (2015-2018), FC Barcelona (2018-2020) and Inter Milan (2020-2022) took his place on... a horse.
Dressed in a crown, a cape and armed with a sword, Arturo Vidal began a tour of the field in front of a cheering crowd.
The player could not hold back his tears in the face of such enthusiasm.
"Back home"
“
Some (footballers) come back to retire, for sentimental reasons.
It's not my case.
My decision was different.
I came back here to compete, to fight and to fight for several more years with Colo Colo in order to achieve important things
, declared Vidal during a press conference on January 23.
I am very happy to be back home after almost 17 years (...) I come back with many dreams fulfilled abroad.
I am happy.
I think it was a good time to come back.
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