Arturo Vidal said no to OM

“We are working a lot on the market to position ourselves on players who are the first choices. A lot of the names that are going to hit the press will be true. We are going to make a mix with experienced players and young players who can bring freshness to the interior of the club ”. On Wednesday at a press conference, Pablo Longoria spoke of the future summer transfer window of Olympique de Marseille, without going into too much detail. He wants to create a tasty mix of youth and experience, and for the second part, Jorge Sampaoli had a clear idea: to welcome Arturo Vidal, a player he knew with the selection of Chile and whom he is close to.

Bringing Vidal to La Canebière would be a tremendous blow for the Marseille club, but it seems very complicated. Already because the 33-year-old player is playing at Inter Milan, where things are going rather well for him, with another coach who appreciates him, Antonio Conte. Then because his salary is generous (6.5 M € per year) and finally because he will play the Champions League next season while staying with the Nerazzurri.

Arturo Vidal preferred to decline

If Pablo Longoria quickly wanted to calm the enthusiasm by explaining that the Chilean was too expensive for OM, there was little hope thanks to the special connection between Vidal and Sampaoli. But as explained Provence, despite the contact established between the two men and the attempt of the Argentine coach to convince him to join him, Vidal preferred to decline the proposal.

OM will therefore not be able to benefit from the contribution of this experienced player for next season. Another target “made in Sampaoli” is called Thiago Almada and was mentioned by Pablo Longoria on Wednesday. There, more than the salary, it is the tariff of the clause which is prohibitive since it amounts to 20 M €. Vélez Sarsfield, a 20-year-old midfielder club, could however be less greedy.