How Juventus Can Get the Best out of Arturo Vidal Next Season

With little time to reflect on their remarkable 2014/15 campaign, Juventus have already begun planning for next season, with significant changes made to the Italian champions' squad before the transfer window has even officially opened.

Carlos Tevez—the club’s leading scorer in each of the last two seasons—is set to return to former side Boca Juniors, and Mario Mandzukic and Paulo Dybala have seemingly arrived in Turin to replace him. That is a hugely difficult task, given the impact the presence of the Argentinian star had on the rest of the team, but Juventus can call upon another South American star to give them a similar boost.

Last season, Arturo Vidal endured perhaps his toughest campaign since arriving in Turin in 2011, yet the Chilean remains a key figure in Massimiliano Allegri’s side, and one the coach must look to draw the very best from the player in 2015/16.

Michel Euler/Associated Press

The kind of match-winning performances Vidal is capable of were limited last term, the effects of the player rushing to recover from knee surgery evidently taking their toll over the winter months. Yet it is something he clearly does not regret, as he discussed in a recent interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t ESPN FC):

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I would do it all again, I seriously risked hurting myself beyond repair by trying to get back so soon. It was a decision I made for the love of Juventus. I could not have left this club in the lurch before a Europa League semi-final against Benfica.

Some [of the criticism] was unfair. Sometimes I had to play in a disastrous physical state, but only I and the doctor knew. If I am needed, I certainly never hold myself back.

"

Fortunately, he does not enter this summer under a similar cloud, though his exertions at the Copa America will mean Vidal will undoubtedly need to be rested for the opening games of the season. With Sami Khedira joining the club and Stefano Sturaro continuing to develop and improve, Allegri is blessed with a deep and talented squad, one he must utilise if he is to protect his Chilean star.

The coach has proved to be smart in this area already, and there is no reason to doubt that he will continue to be that way, with his ability to rest and rotate Vidal essential if Juventus are to see his best form on the field.

Perhaps the other key factor centres on the player’s position on the pitch, with Allegri often deploying the 28-year-old in a much more advanced role than he had previously played. Indeed, where Vidal featured in the midfield three of Antonio Conte’s 3-5-2 formation, the new boss played him just behind the strikers in what was essentially a 4-3-1-2 framework.

The primary benefit of that move was to allow Vidal to be the first point of defence when Juventus lost the ball, his ferocious tackling often leading to quick goals in transition, with Alvaro Morata and Tevez capitalising on their team-mate's effort. Others will do the same this coming season.

Vidal weighed in with eight goals and four assists in all competitions last term, including the key strike in the club’s Champions League quarter-final victory over AS Monaco.

Felice Calabro'/Associated Press

He also netted the vital goal against Sampdoria that ultimately clinched the league title, but the more advanced role also serves to conserve Vidal’s energy. No longer asked to be the box-to-box midfielder he was at Bayer Leverkusen—the younger Paul Pogba can fulfil that role—he can now choose where best to affect the game.

According to statistics from WhoScored.com, Vidal still led all Juventus players with 3.1 tackles per game on average, but he did so without needing to chase back to his own penalty area in order to make them.

Allegri showed in his debut campaign with Juve that he is a highly intelligent coach, and getting Vidal the proper rest before deploying him in the correct role will ensure Juventus get the very best from him in 2015/16.