I'm not going to explain the Barca system to you, I am taking that was a rhetorical question? The spine of the team have all either been brought up in the system or have been here long enough to play the system. Vidal is too long in the tooth to change now. Positionally speaking he just gets in the way most of the time or doesn't get into the space people are expecting him to get into. He struggles with quick one-two's, or give and go and hasn't developed a partnership with any of the midfielders. He can't play as the defensive pivot, as he drifts all the time and is not an attacking midfielder as he doesn't have the vision or a box to box midfielder. What he is good at is causing havoc and I suppose that is why Valverde plays him and that he adds a bit of bite into the midfield. Personally specking I have never really understood what he brings to the team. That is only my opinion. I am happy to have my mind changed.
Yeah, the Vidal hype is strong on this forum in the last few Months.
Vidal is bringing the fighting spirit, which is awesome.
But as a footballer, he is just meh in this moment.
He is playing some weird first touch or 1-2s football all the time.
He is awesome at tackles, but not as a pivot, but as a midfielder flying over the pitch and tackling everyone who gets in his way.
For a defensive player, as a pivot, he ventures in attack too often and leaves his position exposed.
And for an attacking player, as a CAM, he is not that creative plus he is playing those weird 1-2s all the time which are kinda ruining our (slow) classical possession play around the box.
So, basically, he is a box to box CM with a heart and tackles, who needs a proper pivot behind his back and who usually needs a proper CAM or a more attacking player infront of him.
So, in Busi-Frenkie-Arthur, we have some defensive cover in Busi (and Frenkie) but we don't have anyone who is even able to enter into the final 3rd and do something crucial there.
In Vidal-Frenkie-Arthur, we are even worse.
With Busi, we at least have one slow, turtle, tree pivot who is at least holding his position and is not going into attack too often.
With Vidal-Frenkie-Arthur: who is a pivot here?
Frenkie loves to venture in attack too often and leaves his back exposed (a user from Netherland explained that this is why Ajax and NT coaches usually pair him in a double pivot formation where the 2nd guy can cover for him when he goes into an attacking mission). Vidal doesn't have a clear position and is not a pivot surely. Arthur is a guy for a double pivot. Till now, his defending seems average and I wouldn't trust putting him into a single pivot formation.
Then, if Frenkie and Arthur are double pivots, Vidal is useless as an attacking guy because he will roam all over the pitch and leave his CAM position.
If we'll play double pivot, the 3rd guy should be someone who can actually play a pass and shoot. Like Coutinho, the most hated guy Rakitic, Rafinha, Alena or Puig.
Anyway, a forum has some weird biases and obsessions even though the most often those ideas don't have too much logic in practice.
My current favorite crazy idea is:
Vidal-Frenkie-Arthur, a totally crazy and weird midfield (or the same: Busi-Frenkie-Arthur without any attacking player) paired with Semedo who can't do anything once when he enters into an attacking half.
Paired with a new crazy lineup: Dembele-Griezz-Messi attack, where we would have:
1. 3 midfielders who can't do anything in the attacking third
2. a RB who is scared to do anything around the opponent's box
3. an attacking trio with 2 false 9s or silent strikers, without a man in the box (again paired with 3 midfielders who will never shoot on goal)
= so sterile possession, Messipendencia and 10 Messi's shots from the edge of a box, here we come.
Since there is no way to do any other kind of a shot in that formation.
Even EV's crazy 442 without any wingers had more tactical sense than these new forum's ideas.
