Chelsea FC: Why David Luiz Is the Blues' Answer to Arturo Vidal

What comes to mind when you think of Chelsea's David Luiz?

Dazzling, affable, vivacious, inconsistent, daredevilish.

Lad, unpredictable, imaginative, zany.

His nickname, Sideshow Bob, is self-deprecating but weirdly appropriate, just like the late Liverpool legend Emlyn Hughes being called Crazy Horse. 

If you think Luiz will live up to his £21.3 million transfer fee as a centre-back, then you probably would start Arturo Vidal at centre-half. 

El loco, eh?

Well, back in 2007, Vidal had aspirations to be as great as Elías Figueroa, the only defender to win the South American Footballer of the Year award three times running (via Tim Vickery at BBC Sport): "Arturo Vidal—powerful utility man who says he'll be the world's best centre-back in a few years."

Then-Chilean under-20 manager José Sulantay had other ideas and opted to start Vidal as a left wing-back during 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. 

Michael Skibbe, Bayer Leverkusen's manager at the time, learned quickly that wing-back and full-back were like apples and oranges. 

He watched in despair as Vidal, playing at left-back, was torn apart on his league debut by Romeo Castelen, whose career at Hamburg was blighted by knee injuries. 

From that day on, Leverkusen management canned the idea of using Vidal as an emergency left-back. 

Whether it was Karim Haggui, Henrique or Sami Hyypiä, Vidal never had the chance to show his worth as a centre-back partner to Manuel Friedrich.

In the Chilean's last season, Stefan Reinartz also emerged as a centre-back option, but by then the thought of Vidal marshaling the back four made as little sense as starting Luiz at left-back vs. Hulk. 

During the 2010-11 Bundesliga season, in a free-roaming midfield position thanks to the flexibility of Jupp Heynckes, Vidal scored more goals (10) than Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (9).

The Chilean registered more assists (11) than Marco Reus.

Vidal led the league in tackles made (155) and was third in total interceptions (91). 

He also had kicker's fifth highest player rating for a midfielder. 

Since moving to Juventus, he has taken his game to the next level.

The two main differences between Vidal and Luiz is that one, those who managed the Chilean knew he wasn't centre-back material.

Secondly, Heynckes and Antonio Conte did not restrict Vidal's natural playing style which is gun-ho, cavalier-like and powerful. 

Chelsea's most hated manager in the Roman Abramovich era, Rafa Benítez, is so far the only one to have given Luiz an extended run in midfield. 

In the 2-0 win over Swansea City, he won five headers in one half of the pitch and three in the other. He completed four of his five tackles. He played with freedom and showed world-class potential as a box-to-box midfielder. 

Here's a quote from Brendan Rodgers reflecting upon a player he watched at academy level (via The Daily Mail): "He was playing left-back, he was not a stand-out player. They had Nathan Dyer, Leon Best, Dexter Blackstock, Adam Lallana and guys like that."

Who was Rodgers referring to? 

Gareth Bale, who struggled at left-back, only to transition into an elite winger (produced some of the greatest crosses you'll ever see) and is now a world-class deep-lying forward. 

It's only a matter of time before a special manager with a tactical nous of the highest order moves Luiz into midfield permanently, where he has the capability to be Chelsea's answer to Vidal. 

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Statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com, Fox Soccer and Squawka.com