Arturo Vidal slams Newcastle and AC Milan after Champions League clash
Former Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Juventus midfielder Arturo Vidal has hit out at Newcastle and AC Milan after their Champions League clash on Tuesday, labelling the Magpies ‘disgusting’ and everyone involved ‘fools’.
Newcastle returned to Champions League action for the first time in 20 years and picked up a credible goalless draw at the San Siro in their first group stage outing. It wasn’t a match that will live long in the memory but Vidal has gone further than that, saying it is the worst contest he has ever seen in the Champions League.
He was happy to dish out some insults to other clubs, but Newcastle caught the brunt of the abuse, while his former side Barcelona came out with great praise.
‘I saw the worst game in the history of the Champions League,’ Vidal said on his Twitch, via Red Gol. ‘Milan and Newcastle, how they play that match in the Champions League, crazy. Not like the one between Porto and Shakhtar, great. Boring [Manchester] City, as always. The one between PSG and Borussia, the second half was good, in the first half I fell asleep.
‘But those fools from Milan with Newcastle left me sick. They are lucky because they only know how to run, otherwise they wouldn’t be there. I don’t understand Newcastle, they come fourth in the league, but they don’t do anything, disgusting. They have to risk their lives, if it is their first game, show a little more, they left me as angry as hell. This is Champions.’
Vidal went on to praise Barcelona for their performance in their opening Champions League game against Ferencvaros, saying they were a ‘machine’ and ‘moving forward like crazy’.
36-year-old Vidal is still playing in Brazil with Athletico Paranaense after a stellar career in Europe which saw him win four Serie A titles, one with Inter, three Bundesliga crowns with Bayern Munich and a La Liga title with Barcelona.
Eddie Howe will have been happy enough with the draw in Milan with matches against PSG and Dortmund to come but Vidal clearly wasn’t impressed by Newcastle’s return to the Champions League.
The Magpies will have to up their game if they are to progress from a tough group which also includes Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk.
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