Man, it’s hard being a top-3 football club these days. If you’re a fan of Real Madrid, Barcelona, or Bayern Munich, you’ve probably been avoiding eye-contact at social occasions this past week or so. All three of these teams have managed a single victory between them over the last 4 games. Now, Arturo Vidal has become the first player to go public with grievances about his coach. What did Vidal say? Our friends at Barca Blaugranes did a quick write-up of the situation. Here is Vidal in his own words: I am not happy but if I have a problem with the coach I will say it to his face. How am I going to be happy if I don’t play, and me of all people. I am someone that has always fought, that has been in the best teams in the world, that has won everything and who wants to continue winning at Barcelona. [ ... ] It [the Judas message] was nothing to do with anything sporting and I took it down to stop people speculating. There are personal things, jokes which you can put on social media and people take the wrong way. Source | FourFourTwo The “Judas message” refers to an Instagram post made by Vidal in which he said one doesn’t argue with Judas; you merely wait for him to hang himself, calling to mind his coach Ernesto Valverde. The post has now been deleted, but not before it was liked by his teammate Marc Andre ter Stegen. It is being reported that Vidal feels “betrayed” by Valverde on account of a lack of playing time. Does that sound familiar? Were the statements justified? As someone who watches Barcelona regularly, but as a neutral, I can see why Vidal is upset. When played in his proper position, Vidal has always delivered the same exemplary performances he used to give in a Bayern Munich shirt. However, Valverde seems to prefer to use Vidal as a late-game sub for Ousmane Dembélé in order to lock down the midfield and protect a lead. Anyone familiar with the Chilean would know that this is an egregious misuse of his talents. In fact, it would be not unlike the situation James Rodriguez seems to find himself in at Bayern, where he also has been suffering from a lack of minutes despite good performances. Yet whether a player plays or not remains the coach’s decision. When does it become right for a player to speak out about such things, if ever? Should players be allowed to place such pressure on their manager? The problem with player power I’m pretty sure most people reading this are thinking, “well, Vidal was right to call out his coach.” I’m pretty sure many would feel the same about James and regard his reported agitation as justified due to the unfairness of his selection. However, what would you say if Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery complained about the same thing? Would you support them, if they called out the coach now? The problem with player power is this: as soon as you give a player power, it’s very hard to take it back. Player A makes a fuss and gets into the lineup. Player B sees that and decides to follow suit. Say you accommodate Player B, as well, but then player C, who may or may not be a fan favorite, begins talking to the media. What if you want to make a tactical change, and players A, B, C disagree? By this point, the coach is no longer running the club; the players are. And, in general, players make very bad managers of football clubs. However, managers are not gods. They can make mistakes, and sometimes these mistakes are apparent to everyone but the person making them. In this case, wouldn’t the player be justified in complaining? In a healthy dressing room, there needs to be a balance between player power and coach’s authority. In my opinion, the ideal approach is the one Jupp Heynckes took — no nonsense, proper communication, and playing time based on merit. Kovac and Valverde have both suffered from making decisions that are hard to justify. Perhaps if they took a more egalitarian approach, their players would be more content with their decisions. However, one can also be too egalitarian, creating an air of anxiety and uncertainty in the dressing room. One or two bad performances should not be enough to get a player benched. It’s a fine balancing act that these coaches need to employ. That is, after all, what they signed up for, when they took the job at a top-3 club.<doc-sep>Arturo Vidal says he's happy at Barcelona LaLiga Santander Chilean will wait for his chance Though he's sat on the bench for most of his time at Barcelona, Arturo Vidal said he was happy the club on Thursday. An 'angry emoji' on his social media had led many to believe that all was not well with the Chilean, but he's moved to dispel those rumours. "I'm happy and I know that beautiful moments will come which I will enjoy, and do what I know how to do," Vidal said to Peruvian radio station RPP Noticias. Before the Peru and Chile friendly in the United States, the player, 31, also denied that he is one of the senior players that is trying to "pick the team" for coach Reinaldo Rueda. "That makes me laugh," he continued. "I've never been in a team where players choose players. "Rueda knows a lot about football, and nobody, not even the best player in the world, can tell a coach what to do. "Clearly, Rueda is a nice person and is building a team with young players and some old ones."<doc-sep>
Barcelona midfielder Arturo Vidal "lacked respect" for his team-mates by complaining on social media about his lack of playing time, says the club's sporting director Pep Segura. Chilean international Vidal has started only two games for the Catalan giants since his summer move to the Nou Camp from Bayern Munich. The former Juventus man competing with Sergio Busquets, Ivan Rakitic and Brazilian trio Philippe Coutinho, Arthur and Rafinha for places in a quality-packed Barca midfield. He recently took his frustration out by posting messages on his Instagram account featuring angry or frustrated emojis. Segura, speaking to the Catalan daily Sport, said: "A professional has to show respect for his team-mates, for the dressing room and for the coach even if the decisions that are taken are not always the ones he expects. "Vidal knows he's made a mistake and that he's lacked respect for his teammates. I'm sure he will make amends." Coach Ernesto Valverde has opted to start Arthur in recent matches, with Vidal not playing at all in Barca's 1-1 draw at Valencia in La Liga on Sunday and appearing for just three minutes against Tottenham in the Champions League last week. Vidal's frustrations were evident when he spoke to reporters on Tuesday after joining up with the Chilean national team. "I am somebody who has always fought, been at the best teams in the world, won everything and who wants to continue winning at Barcelona," Vidal said, according to Diario Sport. "I am fine physically and happy. In the past few games I have been a bit annoyed but that is how it is, we will keep battling. There are a lot of important games ahead and we will see."