FC Barcelona sign Arturo Vidal to curb midfield problems

Spanish giants FC Barcelona completed of world-renowned midfielder Arturo Vidal on Monday. The fee is at this moment undisclosed but is expected to be around $23 million to $46 million.

The Chilean has won the league wherever he has played and is arriving from another big name club in Germany’s Bayern Munich. He was playing for Italian champions Juventus before making that switch.

Barcelona were undergoing a debacle in the midfield department since the departures of Andres Iniesta to J-League and Paulinho to Chinese Super League. Ivan Rakitic and Sergio Busquets were the only two central midfielders left capable of being included in the starting XI, but now the team has got one of the most versatile players in Arturo Vidal.

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— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) August 6, 2018

31-year-old Vidal is highly regarded as one of the best box-to-box players, and his tenacity whilst playing the game is sometimes overwhelming for his opponents. He won 6 trophies with Bayern Munich and would want to repeat a similar run of trophies in Spain as well.

“The objective is to win everything, to have the highest standards, I have come here to win every trophy that we can and I am prepared to give my all on the pitch so that we can do this. I am so excited to arrive here, to have the opportunity to play alongside great players like Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Sergio Busquets. Now, I cannot wait to get started.” he told the media after he was unveiled as an FC Barcelona player.

Other clubs such as Manchester United and Chelsea were also interested in securing the services of Vidal, but he chose the defending Spanish La Liga champions. Not only has he represented Chile more than 100 times, but the resume Vidal possesses in club career where he played in different leagues around the world, can be compared with anyone.