An agreement has been reached with Bayern Munich for the Chilean to join Barcelona.
Arturo Vidal’s move to Barcelona has been heavily rumoured over the last few days and it has now been officially confirmed by the club. He will sign a three-year contract with the club subject to a medical, but the fee hasn’t been revealed; although it’s rumoured to be 20 million euros.
Even considering his age and recent injury problems, which includes a serious knee injury that he is currently recovering from, this fee is small considering the current market. A three-year contract is the right length as well because it gives them flexibility over selling him on as well as ensuring he isn’t tied down to a long-term contract.
Bayern Munich have opted to sell him because they have a strong midfield and Niko Kovac is obviously content with the strength in depth they have. Leon Goretzka has been brought in this summer and he acts as a direct replacement for Vidal. Inter Milan were heavily linked with the Chilean, but they reportedly stalled the transfer as they made an ambitious move for Luka Modric, which has seen them miss out on their initial target.
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His arrival means that Ernesto Valverde has a multitude of midfield options with a variety of profiles to choose from. Vidal is a dynamic box-to-box midfielder so he adds depth to that area after the departure of Paulinho. Sergi Roberto and Ivan Rakitic have both shown that they can be used in that role as well. Unfortunately, this is likely to have an impact on Arthur’s minutes unless Philippe Coutinho is played further forward.
He certainly isn’t a traditional Barcelona midfielder in terms of technical ability and understanding of positional play, but he could be a useful asset. His time at Juventus and Bayern means he has plenty of experience at the top levels of football including a Champions League final loss to Barcelona in 2015.
Vidal’s fitness will have to be monitored, but he will certainly help when another team is bullying them physically such as Roma did. He could also be used in big games to allow Barcelona to impose themselves on games by shutting down opposition attacks and controlling the central areas.
This transfer suggests that Valverde hasn’t significantly changed his ideas from last season in terms of tactics and personnel. Therefore, the 4-4-2 is likely to make an appearance again at some point even though a 4-3-3 has solely been used in pre-season so far.
Barcelona now have 10 senior midfielders, not including Andre Gomes who could be leaving this summer, so more outgoings are likely before the end of the window because that’s too many. Roberto could be used as a right-back and Coutinho as an attacking midfielder and it would still leave 8. Sergi Samper, Rafinha and Denis Suarez will have to prove that they deserve a place because they are the ones in most danger.