Scout report: Aleix Vidal - What to expect from Barcelona's new signing

Aleix Vidal is Barcelona’s newest recruit who will join the club in 2016

Lifting a fourth European Cup in nine years in Berlin, Barcelona’s present looked very rosy with a 3-man attack that managed 122 goals between them and the victory over Juventus completing a second treble in six seasons. It was the future however that was concerning.

Luis Enrique raised doubts over his immediate future as coach, since allayed by his decision to stay on, while a summer of presidential elections awaits as Josep Bartomeu seeks to end the tension surrounding the financial controversies surrounding his predecessor Sandro Rosell.

On the pitch, the right-back position became problematic with Dani Alves, winner of 18 trophies since joining Barca in 2008, looking set to leave the Camp Nou as he failed to agree a new deal. The Brazilian has since extended his stay in Catalonia, signing a 2-year deal in what represents a surprising U-turn, but until then Barcelona were tasked with replacing Alves, who still offers elite-level class in his position despite his 32 years of age, whilst hindered with a transfer embargo that will last until January 2016.

They have, however, completed a deal for Aleix Vidal from Sevilla for £13 million and will have a contract with Barcelona until 2020. Mostly used by Unai Emery as an attacking right-winger last season, Vidal was also used occasionally as a right-back. With Alves now tied-down Enrique is well-stocked down that flank as he looks to not only give energetic cover to Lionel Messi but also complement the Argentine with dynamic runs forward.

The 25-year-old Vidal cannot be registered until half-way through next season, so we will have to wait to see what he will bring to the Spanish and European champions, but here is an indication of what to eventually expect;

Vidal’s background

Vidal was born in Valls, a town in the Tarragona region of Catalonia and his nomadic youth career did, in fact, take in a year at Barcelona as a schoolboy, as well as two years at Real Madrid. Vidal also took in FC Cambrils, Gimnastic and Reus as he searched for the first professional deal he eventually got with Espanyol in 2008.

He failed to make a single appearance for the club though and ended his first season on loan at Greek club Panthrakikos before he moved to Gimnastic in 2009 where he spent most of his time with their feeder club Pobla Mafumet. His move to Mallorca B in the Segunda Division B marked his first chance to get a regular run of games and although his season with them ended in relegation, he moved to another reserve side in 2011, this time joining Almeria B.

He would, however, be immediately elevated to the first-team who were then in the Segunda Division and after 116 appearances with the Andalusians across three seasons in which he helped them earn promotion to La Liga as well as consolidate in the top-flight, he moved to Sevilla last summer for a €3 million fee.

Aleix Vidal (L) during his days with Sevilla

“My strongest quality could be my speed” said Vidal as he made the move and with Emery improving Sevilla’s ability to counter-attack with pace he was a prime addition to the manager’s plans and it was no surprise to see the winger go straight into the team. One of the many astute, cut-price deals that Emery has forged his team with, Vidal contributed a series of gutsy performances as he managed 42 appearances in his year with Sevilla, scoring 6 goals and contributing 9 assists, as they finished 5th in La Liga and won the Europa League.

After a determined performance from Vidal as Sevilla battled back from 2 goals down to earn a point against Barca in April, the winger’s pin-point cross assisted Kevin Gamiero’s 84th minute equaliser, the Catalans came calling and were quick to unveil the 25-year-old, announcing the deal and completing a medical for the player in the 48 hours following their Champions League triumph.

On signing, even if he can’t kick a ball competitively for his new club until 2016, Vidal couldn’t mask his delight. "I've played for a lot of teams before arriving at Barca, but I hope this one's the last,” he said, in a nod to the peripatetic career he has endured to date. "I went through a lot to get here and I'm living a dream.”

Strengths and playing style

Alves’s decision to renew his contract with Barcelona means it is currently unclear where Vidal will be deployed by Enrique once he is permitted to play, but if he is to be an eventual replacement for the Brazilian, then he comes with the right attributes. To be a full-back at the Camp Nou, it is a requirement to possess a tireless engine in order to bomb up and down the flank to both cut off opposition attackers as well as drive forward to offer width in the opposite half.

Vidal, who quickly adjusted to the physical exertion and demands Emery places on his players, is naturally suited to that role and the 30 chances he created in La Liga last term, only 4 Sevilla players carved out more, stands him in good stead as an attacking force. In the league only Carlos Bacca managed more assists than Vidal’s 5 for Sevilla while on his way to winning the Europa League, his 4 assists in that competition was bettered only by Kevin De Bruyne’s 5 and Andriy Yarmolenko’s 7.

Vidal was a key member of Sevi;;a’s Europa League winning squad

Blessed with electric pace and a natural aggression to fight his opponent for the ball, he can be extremely difficult to defend against, as Real Madrid’s Marcelo would attest after being given the run-around by the Spaniard at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in May.

His lightning speed is used to charge directly towards goal, often on the outside of full-backs to meet balls that are threaded through the inside (like his goal vs Malaga on the final day of the season), but his average of 2.3 dribbles per game last season shows he is not afraid to run with the ball at his feet. In fact, in Sevilla’s squad only Ever Banega attempted more dribbles than Vidal last season.

He was also Sevilla’s most accurate shooter with 73% of his 19 shots finding the target and with a 55% success rate from crosses Vidal personifies a hard-working winger who conjures up an end-product when he is roaming forward.

Those qualities will give tough competition to the aging Alves as well as balance to the equally-attacking Jordi Alba, whom Vidal was a part of Barcelona’s academy with back in 2001/02, out on the left. However whereas Vidal may not be as gifted technically as the two current full-back incumbents at the Camp Nou, he makes up for it with his work-rate and relentless determination.

Spanish football journalist Guillem Balague, who says Barcelona have been watching Vidal for a significant period, has the energy to operate an entire flank on his own, a huge positive with Enrique having to build his team around Messi’s adventurous runs inside.

“At the beginning of the season, Luis Enrique asked his full-backs to be the only ones using the wings. Dani Alves could do that, and Aleix could do that too,” said Balague, “Vidal could have the whole wing for him, he could just play as a winger or he could just play as a full-back.”

Notable weaknesses

While Vidal is dynamic and is full of vigour in his play, he can often be too enthusiastic in charging forward so he may have to curtail that as he seeks greater balance between sticking and twisting in an important position for Barcelona. Furthermore, having lost more tackles (56%) and take-ons (56%) than he won last term, together with a modest total of 29 interceptions, his defensive statistics are distinctly average so he will have to focus on that has he prepares for a more reserved role at the Camp Nou.

His sub 6-foot frame also means he is often dominated in the air, but he is unlikely to ever give up a ball without a fight. Though a look at his highlights reel for last season indicates Vidal is a Barcelona player in the making, physical, tough, powerful, quick and direct, and he will have the first six months of his career in Catalonia to smooth out the rough edges he arrives with.

He has done enough to be called up to Vincent Del Bosque’s Spain squad for this month’s games with Costa Rica and Belarus and there is no doubt Barcelona have got a vastly-talented player at a bargain price to eventually be Dani Alves’s replacement. With Vidal now on board, he and Barcelona await a very exciting future.