Chilean midfielder Arturo Vidal arrived in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday, where he is expected to sign a contract with Flamengo, the most popular team in Brazil, until the end of 2023.
“I am happy to be here (…) We are in talks,” said Vidal at the airport, when he was received this afternoon by club representatives and dozens of Atletico fans who waited for him with flags and chants.
Figure of the Chilean team, Vidal, 35, had been in the middle of a bid between the Brazilian club and the Argentine Boca Juniors while negotiating with Inter Milan, with whom he has a contract until June 2023, to stay as an agent free.
But a few days ago it transpired that his destination would be Mengão.
Upon stepping on Rio de Janeiro soil, Vidal said that he would attend the match between Flamengo and the Colombian Deportes Tolima at the Maracana on Wednesday night, for the qualification to the quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores.
If his signing as a carioca materializes, the Chilean will wear the jacket of a South American team for the first time after 15 years playing in Europe.
On Thursday, according to the media, he will undergo medical tests and then travel to Italy to conclude his relationship with Inter.
World Cup with Chile in South Africa-2010 and Brazil-2014 and banner of the ‘golden generation’ that won two Copa América (2015, 2016), the midfielder will only be able to debut in the red and black from July 18, when the window of Brazilian football inscriptions.
