Aleix Vidal Must Keep His Head Above Water in Luis Enrique's Barca Meritocracy
Justice was swift to arrive. Beaten by Alaves on Saturday, Barcelona manager Luis Enrique made instant changes to his squad for the Champions League game against Celtic on Tuesday, leaving out the men who were perceived to have let the team down.
Aleix Vidal and Denis Suarez were cut from the squad entirely, both of whom played badly against the Basque minnows, while goalscorer Jeremy Mathieu was also dropped.
The Frenchman was guilty of a bad miss that should have sent Barcelona ahead, although his overall performance was reasonable, and his exclusion was more a result of the versatile Javier Mascherano being a better bench option.
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His selection as a substitute meant the Argentinian, who had one of the worst games of his own recent history, was also cut from the team for the clash with the Scottish champions, which saw the nearly first-choice XI romp to a 7-0 victory.
Being axed would have been most painful for Vidal given the pressure is on for him this season, more so than for Denis, who has just rejoined the club.
Vidal agreed to sign for Barcelona from Sevilla at the end of the 2014-15 season despite the fact the Catalans' FIFA-imposed sanction on registering players meant he could not feature for the club until January 2016.
The plan was for him to take over from Dani Alves as Barcelona's right-back, with the Brazilian seemingly set to depart the same summer Vidal was signed, although he eventually extended his contract before it expired.
Most Barcelona fans greeted the transfer as good news. Vidal impressed at Sevilla, not only as a right-back but as a winger, which is a more natural position for him. Unai Emery slowly converted him from an attacking wide man to a full-back.
His natural inclination to go forward would help the club replace Alves, who was one of their most important attacking outlets during his time at the Camp Nou.
But plans change. Not only did Alves decide to stay for another year, eventually moving to Juventus this summer, but Sergi Roberto converted from a central midfielder to a right-back, earning his place in the team ahead of Vidal this season.
Vidal started his first Barcelona game against Granada on January 9, 2016, a 4-0 win for his side in which he played well.
"It's a lot of time without playing, and it's evident that it's not the same training as it is to compete," he explained afterward, per Sport. "Maybe we're not 100 per cent, but we are content with the performance we have offered."
Unfortunately, that performance was about as good as it has got for him in a Barcelona shirt.
As he struggled to displace Alves from the side and the games increased in difficulty, Enrique began giving him fewer and fewer opportunities, with the defender's hope of making it to Euro 2016 disappearing rapidly.
Unfortunately for Vidal, as Alves started struggling through fatigue, he suffered an adductor problem and was ruled out for a couple of games when he might have been utilised. Barcelona lost both of them, against Real Sociedad and Atletico Madrid. He made it back for the next game but only sat on the bench as his team went down 2-1 to Valencia at the Camp Nou.
He was directly not to blame for any of the defeats, having not featured at all, but in a way he was. Along with Arda Turan, a fellow summer signing, Barcelona's second level, the reserves, failed to show the quality Enrique needed from them to be able to rotate his first team. By not being good enough, Vidal forced the coach to keep playing the same side.
Vidal was then left out again for the next game, against Deportivo La Coruna, with Douglas taking his place on the bench.
That felt like a deliberate jab at him by Enrique, that a player such as Douglas, whose presence at Barcelona was widely questioned, could rise above him in the pecking order.
Vidal took to Instagram to show he was hurt by what happened but that he wouldn't give up:
"To continue when you think that you can't anymore is what makes the difference between you and the rest. Life is not about setbacks but not giving up no matter how big the setback," he posted.
It was suggested at the time that part of the coach’s ire was because he appeared in one of Gerard Pique’s infamous Periscope videos and made light of his situation as a reserve.
After being an unused substitute against Eibar, he said, per Samuel Marsden of ESPN FC: "The best thing about today has been the parchis and not much else. The Eibar bench? It was great, with Jeremy [Mathieu] by my side, like many other times."
It was an unprofessional, if not enjoyably honest answer—one Enrique likely did not approve of.
Vidal explained in pre-season that he had clear-the-air talks with his manager that enabled him to start this season with a clean slate. He said, per Javier Miguel of Sport:
"I had a long talk with [Lucho] because he didn't have a good feeling [about me]. He told me what he thought and I was unhappy over some of the things he said, we both had our reasons. The most important thing was to resolve our differences and we left the meeting pleased. Perhaps, unconsciously, I wasn't training at 100 per cent because I knew I couldn't play [until January]. I was surprised to find that not only was Dani Alves my competition but also Sergi Roberto.
"
Sport’s Jordi Gil reported that Vidal will reject any offers that come his way and will work as hard as he can to make it at Barcelona. At 27, this is his big shot and he can’t let it go.
“His work in training has been positive, and he will continue to behave in the same manner, convinced more chances will come his way,” wrote Gil, even after the Alaves defeat.
It seems Vidal's objective is clear—and the path ahead of him is marked out by others.
It is easy to forget, but in the first few months of Enrique’s reign, Pique was not in the coach’s favour, frequently rotated and in trouble off the pitch too often.
But with a steely determination, the defender worked to transform himself into one of the world’s best centre-backs, an option who was impossible for his boss to ignore.
Then there was Sergi Roberto, who impressed Lucho so much he earned a position that wasn’t even his own.
And most recently, Samuel Umtiti arrived. He joined Barcelona this summer but is already pushing Mascherano back against the ropes for his first-team slot.
Barcelona is a meritocracy. And thus far, Vidal has got what he deserves, which isn’t much at all. But it’s not too late. The season is long, the path inviting. He just has to set foot on it and not look back.
Rik Sharma is Bleacher Report's lead Barcelona correspondent. All information and quotes obtained firsthand unless specified. Follow him on Twitter here: @riksharma_.
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