This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
Arturo Vidal is very much a proven winner.
The now 32-year-old Chilean midfielder has already played for a selection of the creme de la creme teams in Europe, including Bayern Munich, Juventus and now Barcelona.
And not only that but he has also won basically everything there is to win at club level. Wherever he has been he has been a success, and his brilliant haul of countless silverware from all those teams – including a total of 11 domestic league titles – can surely attest to that.
But Vidal is not happy at Barcelona.
Or rather, he would gladly stay but his current situation is making that choice rather difficult. Just recently, he spoke to TV3 (quoted by Daily Mail) and hinted that he might leave in January if his fortune doesn’t turn:
“A lot of games have gone by where I haven’t played and this makes me sad. You have to be objective and live from day to day. If, by December or when the season finishes, I don’t feel important, I will have to make a decision and look for another place to go and be important.”
This statement, along with his recent links to Manchester United, are sure to send a warning signal to the Catalans.
FCInternews reported at the end of last month that Woodward and Fernando Felicevich, the player’s agent, have a good relationship and this may be enough to get the deal over the line.
Of course, Vidal still has about 18 months left on his contract and is only valued at £13.5m by Transfermarkt, so he should definitely be an attainable target for the Red Devils.
Barcelona, however, shouldn’t be looking to offload him just yet.
With the talk of Ivan Rakitic possibly searching for a new home in January as well, Vidal’s departure would suddenly leave them without that extra strength and heart in the middle of the park.
Of course, they have the young force of Frenkie de Jong and Arthur Melo but no one in their squad has an engine and the warrior mentality quite like that of Vidal.
With four goals and one assist already to his name, he is the midfielder with the highest goal contribution in the team and is the joint-highest when it comes to tackling with 2.3 on average in La Liga.
By all means, Vidal looks like a well-rounded option for Ernesto Valverde and quite a unique one at that.
The fact that he offers something different, and something that’s quite obviously beneficial to the team, makes him a player they can’t afford to lose.
It also makes it easy to understand why Manchester United have taken an interest in him.
With Paul Pogba still looking poised to leave and a relatively young squad at Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s disposal, Vidal would definitely be a welcoming sight.
It remains to be seen if they can actually snatch the player away from Blaugrana’s hands.