Arturo Vidal and Luis Suárez, the trendy names in the two biggest clubs in the country.
The possible hiring of Arturo Vidal at Boca and Luis Suárez at River are a daily problem for the two biggest teams in Argentine football, who play Copa Libertadores and Liga every three days, but are awaiting the arrival of two prominent names on their campuses.
The first to dare to dream was Núñez’s team, which came into contact with gunslinger Uruguayan, emboldened by a wallet full of dollars, the result of the disposals of Julián Álvarez to Manchester City and Enzo Fernández to Benfica, which will inflate the club’s treasury by almost 50 million dollars.
But then Boca appeared, who silently began to seduce the King Arthurwith messages of all kinds and a more affective coming and going in which the figure who could finally figure in the contract has not yet taken on a leading role.
How to imagine two footballers with similar careers and with a recent past in elite clubs, playing in a country where the value of the dollar is tapped minute by minute? The answer to this question is in the question itself: this crazy Argentine football, its history and its color, continue to struggle against the stability, organization and greens that are offered in other latitudes.
This is demonstrated by the decision of Diego Godin, who got tired of the comfort of Brasileirao and came to Vélez to gain competitiveness for the last World Cup of his career. Because it is not necessary to be reduced to Boca or River to understand what it means to play in the land of Maradona.
Vidal and Suárez, this is the problem
But going back to Vidal and Suárez, both 35 years old and with an extra couple of seasons ahead, there are several factors being put on the table right now to understand how these negotiations are progressing, both with irregular paces, but so much in the direction positive.
As in those board games where falling into a locker decrees the end of the game, both Boca and River know that if they want to have the Chilean and the Uruguayan in their ranks. they cannot trip over a stone that would throw everything to the ground: the second round of Copa Libertadores.
Battaglia’s team got a precious draw at San Pablo but will have to beat Corinthians at Bombonera if they want to go through. And Gallardo’s men had a bad time at Liniers, but Fortín’s 1-0 was so short that the chances of overturning the series are very real.
But the feeling is logical: if Boca or River are eliminated in the second round, the possibility of taking over from Vidal or Suárez returns to phase 0. It is that the budget to hire them and the personal goal of each of them depend and are explained in that dangerous obsession that is the Copa Libertadores. So not if they pass … game over.
Is the dollar an insurmountable obstacle?
With the same difficulties as an SME that requires input from abroad, Argentine football clubs have to contend not only with the price of the dollar, but also with the possibility of accessing tickets, and the impossibility of being able to predict how and how much the players he wants to “import” can pay.
Hence, clubs pay in pesos and impose price caps (which usually always remains below inflation). The latter is usually a source of conflict between professionals and managers, often decreeing the departure to other destinations in the less attractive roles of South American football, Mexico or MLS.
Now, how do you translate that into Vidal and Suárez, who come from Inter and Atlético de Madrid respectively? In River they went to the point. According to reports, Núñez offered the Uruguayan $ 3 million for the rest of the year ending in November, just before the start of the World Cup. To this we must add 1 million more in case those of Gallardo end up with the Libertadores.
On the Boca side, no specific figures or offers are known. What Xeneize has against is that Vidal has already been tested by the Flamengo, incomparable in economic terms. It is said that he had already closed everything but the negotiations with the Brazilians have stalled. And that the King does not close the idea of adapting to Brazil, where he will be one more, compared to coming to La Boca, where he would be welcomed as a star. Of course, it is also worth mentioning that Ameal Riquelme’s management is not characterized by the market breakthrough with hiring. If Xeneize goes to Corinthians and Vidal is still free, the numbers will start appearing.
The operational clamor and winks
If Vidal is made for Boca, as Riquelme and Maradona once said, the River already fantasizes about Suárez’s goals. In the networks, in the streets, everywhere, Argentine fans have already begun to make the players feel what the warmth of our football is.
Lucho, on vacation in Ibiza with Messi and company, never stops running into fans of the Thousand who ask him “to come and play, that there is nothing more beautiful than screaming a goal at the Monumentale”, according to reporters, tweets, Instagram posts and more.
And Vidal, at this moment in Chile, rains down mentions with sentences of the same tone, asking him “to fulfill Diego’s wish, to speak with his friend Medel, that we are going to fill the field to receive him”.
In this world crossed by social networks, it is said that the gunslinger winked at a fan who asked him if he would come to the River. On the part of Vidal, the most excited remember the words of the King speaking of the Bombonera.
“I’ve never been lucky enough to play at Bombonera, neither for Colo Colo nor for any other team, and I’ve always wanted to hear how they say it feels …” said Arturo a few years ago, when he was playing for Barcelona. And he added: “Boca we know how successful it is, its people … it would be a dream”.
Frictions and international projects
At River they have everything clear, they have already presented him with the offer, they know that Suárez wants to fully reach the World Cup and it remains to be seen what the former Liverpool forward will decide. Even Marcelo Gallardo himself acknowledged having talked to him and they are attentive to the recovery he is carrying out to achieve his physical fullness. “He showed predisposition and enthusiasm”, assured the Doll, who is usually cautious in these matters. They have done their homework, even if what has unexpectedly become a worrying challenge is missing: beating Vélez and going to the quarter-finals.
On the Boca side, the thing also paints near but far, if we talk about alternatives. It is that although it seems that the desire of both sides is very clear, Vidal does not so need to gain attrition and be in a strong league because Chile has not qualified for the World Cup, so he could project the end of his career. in another region and leave Xeneize as an unfinished business or a platonic love that could not materialize. Beating Timao at the Bombonera, or Rossi’s hands in a hypothetical series of penalties against the Brazilians, could be fundamental to defining this story.
Source: Clarin
