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ANALYSIS: Cuadrado the key to Juve's ambitions
It's quite strange that the 27-year-old should join the Old Lady now, when Antonio Conte was known to be very much after the Colombian international's services back when Andrea Pirlo was bossing the midfield and the defence was airtight.
Cuadrado eventually wound up joining a Juventus side in a state of flux, partially brought on by a series of injuries to key players. Oddly enough, even the Colombian star began life in Turin stranded on the bench, though that didn't last long.
Once the worst had passed however, Cuadrado has been able to earmark a clear role for himself in Juventus' system.
But for how long? Allegri's tactical evolution has seen the former Milan coach adopt an impressive hybrid 4-3-3 (it can evolve into a 4-4-2 or 3-5-2 depending on the circumstances), in which Cuadrado has been given the keys to the Porsche (or rather a Ferrari in this case).
Whilst the former Viola winger has shown just how happy he is to do his part in defence, not to mention covering a lot of ground to suit the formation, he has also shown that he isn't very efficient, despite (or because of) the high volume of flashy plays he produces,
It's not hard to conclude that Tevez was more clinical: a force of nature everywhere on the pitch, he could steal it back in the middle, feed it to the striker or go gor goal himself.
Now, the 27-year-old Cuadrado is expected to provide the same spark, despite playing on a team that has struggled to develop alternative attacking threats. Considering that Juve can also coint on Pablo Dybala and Albaro Morata, this is quite alarmibg.
Maybe it's just a question of time. The defence is welcoming back its starters, not to mention their mutual understanding. The midfield could potentially be set to open a Pandora's box of a free-roaming Paul Pogba backed up by the shrewd generalship of Claudio Marchisio and Sami Khedira.
It could well be that this will free Cuadrado, who has so far done a Rooney to make sure the midfield is airtight. Who knows where Juve can go with one of the best midfielders to grace the Serie A in this millenium?
Luca Borioni
Translated by Edo Dalmonte
