‘We can’t afford to lose anyone’: Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu hints that Inter Milan target Arturo Vidal will STAY at the Nou Camp
- Barcelona midfielder Arturo Vidal had been linked with a move to Inter Milan
- Barca’s president has now admitted the club can’t afford to let anyone leave
- Vidal has had to endure a bit-part role, often coming off the bench as a sub
- Club president also batted away speculation of a move to sign Lautaro Martinez
Inter Milan target Arturo Vidal looks set to stay at Barcelona until at least the end of the season after the club’s president admitted they ‘can’t afford to lose anyone’.
Barcelona currently sit top of La Liga – ahead of Real Madrid on goal difference – but Vidal has had to endure a bit-part role and has been heavily linked with Inter Milan.
Ahead of Barcelona’s Champions League trip to Milan to face Inter on Tuesday, Bartomeu fielded questions on the midfielder’s potential exit to their rivals.
Arturo Vidal is enduring a bit-part role at Barcelona this season and is being linked with an exit
Vidal now looks set to stay, despite heavy links with Antonio Conte and high-flying Inter Milan
‘We are not expecting any movement in January,’ Bartomeu told La Repubblica. ‘We have a balanced squad; we don’t miss anything, but we can’t afford to lose anyone.
‘It has happened several times to me already [a player showing a desire to be transferred]. Never in January, but at the end of the season. In some cases, we let them go. Other times, we convince them to stay.’
Reports stated previously that Inter Milan boss Antonio Conte was keen to bring Vidal to Serie A, with his side already flying high at the top of Serie A.
Lautaro Martinez is one player in particular that has shone for Inter this season, leading to speculation of a move away in the coming months.
Bartomeu, though, was quick to refute any suggestion Barcelona could swoop for the 22-year-old Argentinian.
‘That question is a trap,’ he said. ‘I can say that Inter are playing very well and he is not the only one to have impressed me. It’s no coincidence that the Nerazzurri are top in Serie A.’
Josep Maria Bartomeu believes that Barcelona can not afford to lose anyone in January
Bartomeu refused to be drawn on speculation of a move for Inter’s Lautaro Martinez
