Arturo Vidal- A Better Buy than Alexis Sanchez?
by Paul McKinnon at Saturday, Jul 16 2011 14:07
As Chile prepare for their upcoming Copa America Quarter Final tie against Venezuela this Sunday, all eyes will undoubtedly be on Alexis Sanchez. The Udinese man has been subject to much transfer speculation this summer, with Barcelona looking likely to pip the likes of Manchester City to his signature, though any deals will remain on ice until Chile's participation in the tournament is over.
While Sanchez hogs the headlines, Arturo Vidal remains as solid and dependable as ever. We've sang the praises of Vidal here on WhoScored.com before and it's something of a mystery as to why he is not as keenly sought-after as his international team mate. With the player out of contract in the summer of 2013, interest is beginning to gather, with whispers of a move to Serie A. Juventus are believed to be particularly keen, while both Roma and Napoli have been rumoured to be eyeing him up. A move to the Premier League has also been mooted, with Vidal seen as an ideal addition to Arsene Wenger's Arsenal side in the event of Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri departing the Emirates this summer.
Vidal has refused to be drawn on the matter, saying only:
"I have to think about my future and Juve's offer represents an excellent opportunity. I will decide after the Copa America."
A look at Arturo Vidal's Character's according to WhoScored.com's player analysis shows his exceptional all-round game; he is very strong in tackling, passing, key passing and finishing.
Vidal's tackling, in particular, is remarkable for a player with such a creative streak to his game- he makes 4.7 tackles per match, the third highest of any central midfielder in Europe's top five leagues.
In the same vein as yesterday's article on Luka Modric, we highlight just how different Vidal's game is from the norm by turning our attentions to the Top 10 Central Midfield Tacklers in Europe's main five leagues last season:
Defensive Stats
Lucas leads the way for central midfielders, with the Liverpool man making 5.2 Tackles per game. Playing in the double pivot in Bayer Leverkusen's 4-2-3-1, Vidal made 4.7 tackles per game, with only Sven Bender - midfield partner to Nuri Sahin at Bundesliga champions Dortmund - making more in Germany, with 4.8.
The fact that Jermaine Jones - during his loan spell at Blackburn Rovers - can still make the top ten with 3.8 tackles shows just how far ahead of the rest Vidal's performances were.
While Bender and Lecce's Giuseppe Vives lead the way for interceptions with 3.3 and 3.2 respectively, Vidal's 2.8 is nevertheless, mightily impressive. Comparing each player's combined total for tackles and interceptions per game, Vidal, with 7.5, is second only to Bender here, with Lucas' 2 interceptions leaving him back in third.
Bolton's Stuart Holden makes the least fouls of our top ten - just 0.9 per game despite averaging 7.1 tackles and interceptions every match, shows fantastic timing in the challenge. Vidal's all-action displays in front of the Leverkusen back-four saw him make 2.4 fouls per game, one of the worst ratios here. He did only pick up 4 yellow cards, however, and was sent off once.
Sunderland's Lee Cattermole was particularly guilty of rash challenges here, making 3.9 tackles per game and being sent off on 2 occasions; the only of our players to receive his marching orders more than once. Bologna's Marco Perez made 4.6 tackles per game and was given 12 yellow cards, but managed to avoid a red.
Passing Stats
Not content with the second best defensive stats for a central midfielder, Vidal also shone in possession. An average of 57.3 passes per game was more than any player here and greater than the likes of Charlie Adam (53.8), a renowned playmaker. Vidal made more passes than any Leverkusen player and was the man team mates looked for whenever they had possession.
Only Lucas comes close for passes (54.4), with the stats of Bender, on 38.1, and Wolfsburg's Jusue, making 36.7, more indicative of a player in Vidal's role. His 84% pass accuracy was second of our featured players, with only new Sunderland signing David Vaughan bettering this figure, with 87%.
This high accuracy is particularly impressive given Vidal's tendency to play plenty of long balls per game (4.5), a clear indication of his ability to find a team mate with precision. Only Vives played more long balls, with 4.7, but his pass accuracy suffered, dropping to 77%, further displaying the quality of Vidal's passing.
Vidal's ability to deliver a killer ball is highlighted by an impressive 1.9 key passes per game. A look at the key passes of the other top ten show just how creative Vidal is for a tough-tackling midfielder; only two more players - Holden (1.3) and Perez (1.2) - made more than 1 key pass per game, though Vidal's set-piece delivery undoubtedly aided his figures here.
More crucially, Vidal seems to be able to lay on real clear cut chances - he grabbed 11 assists for Leverkusen, second highest in the Bundesliga. This put him on a par with the likes of Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben in Germany's top division. It's also level with Cesc Fabregas and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and five more than Alexis Sanchez. The others in our top ten managed 13 between them.
Dribbling and Shooting
Vidal's ability to beat a man from his deep-lying berth is shown by his 0.8 successful dribbles - the second highest of the top ten. Only Vaughan made more (1.1) and with seven of the ten making 0.5 or less, Vidal's skill in possession is obvious. More attacking players such as Wayne Rooney made 0.9 per game, while Frank Lampard managed just 0.3, further example of Vidal's ability.
He was the most fouled of the top ten; 3.8 times per game, while Perez is second with 1.9, suffering half the number of fouls. It's a sure fire sign that the opposition appreciate his danger and choose any means necessary to stop Vidal in his tracks. In terms of goal threat, Vidal also comes out top here; only he (1.2 shots per game), and Holden - 1.1 - managed more than 1 goal attempt per game.
With 10 goals from just 40 shots, it's little wonder WhoScored.com have ranked him so strongly for finishing- a ratio of 1 goal per 4 shots is on a par with top strikers, never mind a defensive midfield player. Interestingly, Alexis Sanchez scored 12, just 2 more than his compatriot, despite playing much of last season up front for Udinese. Given that the other members in our top ten tacklers mustered 5 goals between them, Vidal's eye for goal is yet another facet to his game that makes him such a top-quality individual.
As Chile's Copa America adventure looks likely to see them progress beyond the Venezuela match, Vidal still has plenty of time to remind on-looking managers just what he's capable of. By the time the tournament comes to its conclusion, if the queue for his signature outstretches the list of suitors for Sanchez, there really should be little surprise.
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