Just when we thought the Claudio Bravo controversy at the Chilean national team would stay quiet for a while, at least until the next international break, the local media drops a bomb today.
Newspaper El Mercurio have published an interview with midfielder Arturo Vidal, who’s made it pretty clear he’s not friends with the Manchester City goalkeeper.
In case you don’t know much about this story, it started in 2017, when Chile failed to qualify for the World Cup. At that time, Bravo’s wife made some heavy comments about his teammates, with Vidal being the main target.
The goalkeeper stayed out of the national team for two years, returning a few months ago. There has been a big expectation about his reunion with Vidal, but none of the local outlets could see them interacting, despite playing together in training.
Now Vidal has spoken to El Mercurio, and didn’t hide any of the problems, saying there’s no friendship with the Manchester City player.
“One of the two had to take the first step and it wasn’t me … That’s why I didn’t have problems and each one trained individually. We are not friends and we will not be friends, but the national team is the most important thing,” Bravo told El Mercurio.
The midfielder has confirmed that the last time they spoke was two years ago: “I told him my way of thinking… I don’t know if he understood, because we never talked about it again.
“I have said things and I don’t have to say them to the press.”