Arturo Vidal fires sharp Michael Olise warning to raw Crystal Palace summer signing Dario Osorio
Arturo Vidal has urged Dario Osorio to follow the path forged by Michael Olise if the Chilean winger wants to fulfil his high potential at Selhurst Park.
The 22-year-old complete a loan move to South London from FC Midtjylland, but his legendary international teammate believes he remains far from the finished product.
Speaking as a guest on Chilean television during half-time of Chile’s international friendly against the USA, Colo-Colo midfielder Vidal offered a blunt assessment of what the young attacker must do to elevate his game in European football.
“Look, I do know Osorio; I know his quality, and expectations have always been high for him,” Vidal said.
“Now, I want him to prove it and take that step toward maturity. Once he’s convinced, he has the talent to play for the best teams in the world, his game will change significantly. I still see him as raw.”
Vidal believes Osorio suffers from a lack of self-belief, which hinders him from imposing his clear physical and technical qualities on matches.
“Based on his personality, you can tell he doesn’t yet have that ‘I am Osorio’ confidence – knowing ‘I’m fast, I have technique, I can score goals.’
“Hopefully, this move to Crystal Palace helps him feel capable of competing against anyone, because he has incredible talent – he really does – he just hasn’t shown it yet.”
To illustrate his point, the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich midfielder held up Olise as the benchmark. The French international lit up Selhurst Park before earning a €53m transfer to Bayern Munich, where he has since racked up 50 goals and 58 assists in 114 appearances under Vincent Kompany to establish himself as a Ballon d’Or contender.
“I don’t know if it’s just talent with Osorio. He possesses three very important qualities: the speed to go up against any player in the world, a powerful shot, and a spectacular left foot,” Vidal emphasised.
“He has three attributes he needs to fully exploit, and with that, he can break into the elite ranks.
“I don’t want to make comparisons, but Olise drives forward quickly, beats his man, and is already among the best in the world. Why can’t Osorio, with the same attributes and the same speed, do the same?”
Whether Osorio can channel Vidal’s advice and replicate Olise’s rapid rise remains to be seen, but the baseline expectations at Palace could not be clearer.
