Samuel Eto’o believes Barcelona should offer Newcastle United target Arturo Vidal a lifelong contract to remain at the Camp Nou, hailing the ‘soul’ and ‘personality’ of a natural-born winner in conversation with Mundo Deportivo.
You do not achieve as much as this veteran Chilean has in the game without having a perfect blend of attitude and ability.
And it’s fair to say Vidal has both in spades.
A midfielder who combines supreme technical ability with a ruthless, blood-thirsty, never-say-die spirit, the 33-year-old has won league titles with Juventus, Bayern Munich and Barcelona while dragging Chile across the line twice in successive Copa America campaigns.
While a shot at the Premier League crown is unlikely to come his way as he enters the autumn of his career, Vidal would certainly be a transformative presence at a perennially underreaching Newcastle side.
Mundo Deportivo claim that the 2016 Chilean Footballer of the Year was one of the names being considered by a Magpies side who could still be taken over by a Saudi Arabian billionaire this summer.
But while Vidal has struggled for game time at the Camp Nou, Eto’o thinks letting him go would be a big error on Barcelona’s part.
“Vidal is a different player – a fighter. He gives every last drop of blood,” the legendary striker says. “I frankly hope that he will spend his entire career at Barca.”
“Arturo has the soul, he has this personality and every time he is or is close (to winning something) he carries his team-mates. This leadership; you are born having it or not.”
Newcastle fans love nothing more than a player willing to sacrifice ‘every last drop of blood’ for the cause. So Vidal already feels like a Magpies hero in the making.
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