Chilean midfielder Arturo Vidal was seen storming out of Barcelona training session after being told that he will not be part of Ernesto Valverde's playing XI. This would be the sixth time in 7 consecutive matches where Vidal has been benched by Valverde.
According to ESPN, Vidal always stays back after the training sessions to practice his shooting abilities, however, he left the training early today following Valverde's decision. Several players tried to comfort the 32-year-old midfielder but Vidal stormed out of the training camp.
Barcelona host Real Madrid tonight which is seen as a crucial match in this season's La Liga title race with both teams locked on 35 points after the first 16 league games. A win today for either team would send a strong message to their opponents, both in terms of domestic pedigree and this year's title race.
Vidal's January exit looming large
Arthur Melo is currently sidelined with an injury and Vidal was eyeing that spot to be part of such a huge match. However, Ivan Rakitic looks certain to start ahead of Vidal which led to the Chilean midfielder storming out of Tuesday's training earlier than usual.
ESPN understands that Vidal has been contemplating his future for a while now and is even open to the idea of quitting Barcelona in January if he is not appreciated by the manager.
Inter Milan will be monitoring this situation closely after Antonio Conte has been pushing to sign Vidal in January for a while now. It is believed that Conte and Inter Milan representatives met with Barcelona after their Champions League clash earlier this month to discuss Vidal's future.
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Barcelona are open to letting Vidal leave in January as well but they would want €20million up front to even consider the possibility of Vidal leaving midseason. Conte has previously worked with Vidal at Juventus and is desperate to be reunited with his former star player.
Will today's training session fiasco be enough for Vidal to actually push for a January move out of Barcelona? We shall wait and watch, however, before that Barcelona vs Real Madrid will take the center stage tonight with some world's best players in action.