Arturo Vidal proves he's desperate to win Barcelona place | OneFootball

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Lewis Ambrose·22 November 2018

Arturo Vidal proves he's desperate to win Barcelona place

Article image:Arturo Vidal proves he's desperate to win Barcelona place

Arturo Vidal is determined to win his place in the Barcelona team, starting with this weekend.

The LaLiga leaders take on Atlético Madrid on Saturday evening, with Vidal expecting to start in place of suspended midfielder Ivan Rakitić.


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The Chilean has made nine LaLiga appearances since his summer move from Bayern Munich. However, he has started in just two of those.

However, he won’t throw in the towel and believes Rakitić’s suspension will open the door for him to force his way into Ernesto Valverde’s plans.

Speaking to reporters, Vidal said he “only played 50 minutes because of the Atlético match” after Chile beat Honduras in midweek.

Reports on Twitter say the midfielder flew straight to Barcelona after Chile’s 4-1 win, then turned up at training just hours after his flight had landed.

“He works and trains with his mind on being in the starting line-up for every match,” a source said to be close to Vidal insisted to Goal.

“He understands that he isn’t a guaranteed starter because it is all a part of the process. But his qualities have grown throughout his time in Europe, even though he obviously plays with intense emotion.

“He went to Barcelona because the club wanted a player with Arturo’s qualities. He’s constantly working towards winning every title he can with the club.”

Rakitić has started 11 of Barcelona’s 12 league games so far this season and it seems Vidal is likely to take his place this weekend.