Barcelona midfielder Arturo Vidal made a bold proclamation prior to a UEFA Champions League quarterfinal matchup against Bayern Munich.
The Chilean center-mid didn't shy away from the pressure of playing his former team, which has now won the last eight Bundesliga titles. Having heard Bayern Munich's sense of confidence for Friday's clash, Arturo Vidal mirrored the same emotion during Thursday's press conference:
“I've heard, but I haven't paid much attention to [the noise] because I know the people from Bayern, its players, and I believe that the things that are talked about outside [the pitch] isn't what the players really think,” said Vidal. “Clearly they're very confident, but tomorrow, they won't be playing against teams from the Bundesliga but against Barcelona, the best team in the world.”
"Mañana juegan contra el Barcelona, el mejor equipo del Mundo". Arturo Vidal, muy claro en la conferencia de prensa previo al choque contra el Bayern Munich en la #CHAMPIONSxESPN. pic.twitter.com/FWMNSGQHlg
— SportsCenter (@SC_ESPN) August 13, 2020
The outspoken Barcelona player has never been shy of making bold statements, but this is one of grand stature considering the stakes.
Bayern Munich will have a quality striker in Robert Lewandowski who is arguably in the prime of his career, likely a serious Ballon d'Or candidate if the award was to be held this year — sadly, it won't.
Arturo Vidal played 123 games with Bayern Munich, winning three Bundesliga titles, two SuperCups, and the DFB Pokal during his stint with the team. His proclamations will have to be backed up on the pitch, though there is no word if the Chilean will make the starting XI to begin with.
If the stakes weren't high enough for this Friday matchup, here's a fun fact: when Barcelona and Bayern Munich face off in elimination rounds, the winner of that game has moved on to win it all at the UEFA Champions League. It happened in 2009 and 2015 for Barcelona and in 2013 for Bayern Munich.
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