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David Cartlidge

Seydou Keita. Dani Alves. Ivan Rakitic. Adriano. And now, Aleix Vidal.

The path Barcelona has made from Sevilla to sign their players is a well-trodden one. It’s also, more to the point, a successful one.

Keita was enamoured by fans throughout his time at the club, and is still regarded as a cult icon. Dani Alves has become the best right-back in the history of the club. Rakitic meanwhile, has gone from shy boy to dominating midfielder in his short time in Catalunya. Adriano, meanwhile, has been a versatile, if unspectacular presence.

Given what Vidal has offered in his year with Sevilla since making the step up from Almeria, signs are this could well be another success story.

On an individual basis, Vidal is notable by his work ethic. The joke went before Sevilla’s Europa League final that the 25-year-old would not be taking the plane, and instead would run to Warsaw.

It’s a nod to Vidal’s incredible presence on the field, be it in a game or on the training pitch. Vidal plays every game with great intensity, covering every inch of his flank. His running, while tireless, is coordinated, and over the course of the season he became an excellent tactical component for Unai Emery to use in games.

Defensively, he has been used on occasions as a full-back. Signs are, with the likely exit of Dani Alves, it’s this very role he will be taking up at Camp Nou. Vidal, the notoriously hard worker, will endeavour not to let anyone down.

His defensive acumen is certainly an understated quality. From a positional point of view he is adept, and possesses excellent recovery pace should he ever be caught out. His awareness of the game as a whole is clearly something Emery has drilled into him, and now we see a more rounded individual as opposed to the explosive winger we saw previously.

It is offensively where Vidal prospers most though. He’s a winger by trade after all, despite being often deployed in a full-back role. Contrary to popular belief, he had played as a right-back before during his time on the Catalan football circuit.

Vidal’s career took its time to take off, but with that signature work ethic, the reward has finally come. He was pivotal in a wide role for Almeria as they achieved promotion to La Liga, making himself one of the standout players in Segunda that year, driving at defenders and offering an end product, too.

A direct approach is one that scares defenders in Spain most, given the high proportion of players they face week-in week-out are more ponderous, technically able players. Vidal is ruthless in his movement, sharp, and can offer that verticality Barça strives for in attack.

Sevilla saw the promise of Vidal at Almeria, along with many others, but Monchi, the sporting director at the Europa League holders, was the one to execute a deal.

Valencia looked, Atletico Madrid, too, and several Premier League clubs. Cautious of plucking an untested player, they missed the opportunity. In a single year at Sevilla, Vidal has improved dramatically as a footballer and more than at any other point in his career.

He’s found more definition in the final third, associates superbly with his teammates, and drives into the penalty area well with searing pace. Dani Alves is a full-back, a winger, and a striker all rolled into one. Vidal, in time, has the ability to offer the same.

He’ll need to adapt, of course, and show patience. It was only a few years ago Vidal was playing in the third tier of Spanish football. He knows the Barça system well, though, having spent time at the club as a youngster, in fact he played in the same team as Jordi Alba, before both were discarded after leaving Cadet A.

Now with a Europa League winners medal round his neck, a Spain call-up, and a move to Barcelona, it shows that hard work pays off. Don’t for a minute expect it to stop. After all, Vidal doesn’t know the meaning of the word.