This is why Valverde doesn't want to lose Vidal: 100 percent effectiveness in front of goal Barcelona Has five goals in LaLiga Santander this season

Arturo Vidal has almost permanently been linked with a move away from Barcelona since joining the club in the summer of 2018, yet Ernesto Valverde has shown a lot of faith in him, despite the Chilean's frustrations with regard to his game time.

The Barcelona boss has always insisted that Vidal is an important player for him, with the midfielder having characteristics that are different to many other players in the squad.

He seems tailor made for the type of football Valverde wants to instil, although Vidal has often been criticised for not sharing the same qualities as the likes of Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez in the past.

Therefore, whenever Valverde is asked about Vidal's potential exit, he always shuts the door. And that was the case after the Alaves victory on Saturday, too.

Vidal, who started many of Barcelona's big matches last season, has had to put up with more of a bench role in this campaign, having started just six times.

That has brought rumours of a January departure, particularly with Vidal having voiced his displeasure at his lack of prominence, but there is one key voice pleading for him to stay: Valverde.

The 55-year-old is unwilling to lose a player who offers Barcelona something different; his intensity, dedication, fight and competitiveness are contagious.

But Vidal offers far more than that. His qualities on the ball are rarely discussed, yet there is a reason why he has played for the likes of Juventus and Bayern Munich in the past. He is a goalscoring threat, too.

In fact, the South American has scored five goals in LaLiga Santander this season - and those have come from five shots on target in the Spanish top flight. That is an efficiency rate of 100 percent.

Vidal is thus the fourth top scorer in the Barcelona squad, only behind the MSG trident of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Antoine Griezmann, so it is understandable why Valverde is so against Vidal potentially leaving for Inter.

"The departure of Arturo Vidal is like that famous Miami match, where 'yes' was said and we didn't get to play," Valverde intimated.

"I don't have to think about it much."

If it depends on Valverde, Vidal will stay.