Juventus' Juan Cuadrado Continues to Thrive Away from Chelsea and Mourinho

It must be something about Italy. All across the peninsula, Colombian stars are thriving, with Carlos Bacca perhaps the most prominent example of a player from the South American nation enjoying life in Serie A.

His deadly scoring ability is routinely on display at AC Milan, but the striker is not alone. Luis Muriel has already netted five goals in all competitions for Sampdoria, while Duvan Zapata has four for Udinese; both players are looking impressive in the early months of 2016/17.

Jeison Murillo is one of Inter Milan’s best defenders, but Carlos Sanchez may be the most surprising of all. Shrugging off the struggles he endured with Aston Villa, the midfielder has consistently impressed on loan at Fiorentina as coach Paulo Sousa quickly made him part of the Viola starting XI.

Before scoring against Chievo on his full debut (see above), the 30-year-old arrived in early August and was happy to tell reporters at his first official press conference how he made the decision to move to Italy.

“I talked to [Juan] Cuadrado who told me to come here because it’s a family club, and that was important for my decision,” Sanchez said, citing the decisive input from his international team-mate.

Given his own wonderful time with the Tuscan club, the fact the winger spoke highly of Fiorentina should come as no surprise. Cuadrado spent two-and-a-half seasons with La Viola, contributing 20 goals and 15 assists in just 85 Serie A appearances, seemingly smiling the entire time.

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Keen to break into dance whenever he scored, the man who also spent time with Udinese and Lecce gave Fiorentina fans many reasons to celebrate during his tenure with the club but never more so than on October 20, 2013.

That Sunday saw Juventus travel to the Stadio Artemio Franchi, where they quickly jumped into a 2-0 lead over an opponent who had not beaten them in 15 years. But Fiorentina were inspired in the second half, with Giuseppe Rossi netting a hat-trick and Joaquin adding a stunning fourth goal.

But the true driving force in that clash was none other than Cuadrado, his pace and direct approach repeatedly causing problems for the Bianconeri. According to WhoScored.com, he ended that game having created one goal, completed three take-ons and being fouled six times, the visitors left with no choice but to repeatedly hack him down.

That match and Cuadrado’s subsequent performances at the 2014 FIFA World Cup—where he had one goal and four assists in five appearances—paved the way for a January 2015 move to Chelsea.

But like Sanchez at Villa, he would not enjoy his time in England. The Stamford Bridge outfit spent £23.3 million to sign the player per Matt Law of the Telegraph, but he was never truly given a chance by Jose Mourinho.

“I just know that it's different to play in Italy than to play in England, different to play for Fiorentina than for Chelsea,” Mourinho said at a press conference after handing Cuadrado just four Premier League starts.

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“Next season, I believe he can have a fantastic season,” the then-Chelsea manager added, but the winger would feature for just 11 brief minutes of the 2015/16 campaign before being sent on a season-long loan to Juventus.

Back in Italy he would thrive once again, weighing in with four goals and five assists to help the Bianconeri win a fifth consecutive Serie A title. He would also net his first UEFA Champions League goal as the team were eliminated by Bayern Munich in the knockout stages.

Perhaps Cuadrado’s biggest contribution came in the Coppa Italia, though, with his wonderful deep cross picking out Alvaro Morata in extra time as Juventus defeated Milan to lift the trophy for a second straight season.

The Colombia international would return to London in the summer, but eventually a deal was struck that allowed him to return to Turin.

“He’s on loan for three years at €5 million per season,” Juve director Beppe Marotta said at a press conference, adding that “if Juventus win the Scudetto then there will be an obligatory buyout and €20 million will go to Chelsea.”

"I did everything to come back, and thanks to God I'm here, I'm very happy,” Cuadrado told JTV (h/t ESPN FC) shortly after the deal was finalised. He has quickly set about repaying the Old Lady’s faith in him, his impactful running and tactical flexibility adding a much-needed cutting edge to the team.

That was hugely evident against Olympique Lyonnais earlier this month, a game deadlocked at 0-0 thanks only to the brilliance of Gigi Buffon, whose efforts to deny the French outfit can be seen in the video below.

The Juve skipper’s performance was discussed at length in this previous post, but as time wore on, Dani Alves sent Cuadrado away down the right flank. After a few stepovers to confuse his marker, the winger quickly glanced around for support but nobody was available for a pass.

That prompted the South American to take matters into his own hands in quite spectacular fashion.

“I tried to make the play, looked up and couldn’t see anyone in the middle,” he told Mediaset Premium (h/t Football Italia) shortly after the final whistle. “So I tried to hit a missile and it worked.”

As can be seen in the video above, he did just that, his shot proving unstoppable for Lyon goalkeeper Anthony Lopes. Sadly for fans of the Bianconeri, that result would be followed by a poor loss to Milan last weekend, but they would somewhat make amends against Sampdoria just four days later.

Despite an emphatic-looking 4-1 final scoreline, the victory at Juventus Stadium was far from a convincing display by a team who have looked disjointed all season. However, boosted by Claudio Marchisio’s eagerly awaited return from injury, coach Massimiliano Allegri’s men picked off a poor opponent with relative ease.

Cuadrado tormented them throughout, running rampant on the flank as he turned in yet another fine display. Without taking a single shot, the 28-year-old tipped the result in Juve’s favour, with FourFourTwo Stats Zone highlighting the breadth of his contribution:

Connecting with 47 of his 59 pass attempts, he created four clear scoring opportunities, completed one take-on while winning one tackle, one interception and was fouled twice over the 90-plus minutes of action.

He was directly responsible for two of his side’s goals, his cross after just four minutes picking out Mario Mandzukic for his first strike of the season, while a well-placed free-kick allowed Giorgio Chiellini to head home the fourth.

The video below showcases his every touch, while the man himself insists Juventus must strive to do better as he looked forward to the next fixture against Napoli in a post-match interview with Mediaset Premium.

“Our mentality was spot on. We all felt it as a team and I think we need to make sure we play with that level of determination in every game, starting on Saturday,” Cuadrado said, per Juve’s official website. “Every game we play is tough. Right now we can enjoy this win, but then we need to turn the page straight away.”

He was then asked about his role in the team, to which he gave a remarkably simple answer: “I try to do what Allegri asks me to, which is to stay as wide as possible, look to find the strikers and create chances for them to score.”

Cuadrado has been doing that all season, something that Chelsea and Mourinho never allowed him to. Both could use a player with his attributes this term, but thankfully for Juventus, he’s back in black and white, delivering perfectly timed crosses and scoring important goals.