Italian journalist Fabrizio Biasin feels that Juan Cuadrado must win over skeptical Inter Milan fans the way that Antonio Conte did.
Writing in his column in today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Libero, via FCInter1908, Biasin compared the pair’s situations both arriving with decorated pasts with the Nerazzurri’s bitter rivals Juventus.
The imminent arrival of Cuadrado is coming as a surprise to almost everyone.
On the pitch, the move makes a fair bit of sense. The Colombian will bring extensive Serie A experience and reliable quality to Inter in the short term.
In a very low-cost deal, the Nerazzurri can bring in a player who ha four Serie A titles under his belt.
However, the fact that Cuadrado spent eight years playing for the Bianconeri naturally makes this a very eye-catching deal.
Whilst deals between the big teams are not uncommon in Serie A, moving directly like this for such a long-term servant of Juventus means that Inter fans will have many memories of Cuadrado clashing with them over the last decade.
Another man who faced initial skepticism due to his ties with Juventus was Antonio Conte.
When the Nerazzurri brought Conte in as coach in 2019, they were bringing in a man who’d coached the Bianconeri to three Serie A titles.
Before that, the Italian had been one of Juventus’s best and longest-serving midfielders of the modern era.
Clearly, regardless of Conte’s qualities as a coach, some Nerazzurri fans were always going to view his arrival with suspicion.
However, the ex-Bianconeri coach and player won over Inter’s fanbase. He did this by showing total commitment, and an intense devotion to the Nerazzurri cause irrespective of his Juventus past.
And, to boot, it was Conte who ended his old club’s nine-season run of Serie A titles by winning one with Inter in 2021. This was the crowning achievement that meant that Inter fans fully accepted the Juventus icon.
Biasin: Cuadrado Has To Be Like Conte At Juventus
Cuadrado no doubt has the quality to deliver great performances, and with them wins and trophies to Inter.
However, the 35-year-old will have to show the right attitude in order to do so.
Biasin writes that “Inter fans, or at least most of them, are extremely angry, and it’s not hard to understand why.”
“Cuadrado has been virtually the consummate ‘anti-Inter’ player for a long time now,” he continues. “He seems to represent everything about the rivalry on and off the pitch with Juventus.”
“Put simply, almost all the fans see him as diving, unsporting, unfair – a symbol of everything they hate about Juve.”
“On the other hand the club have their reasons,” he continues.
“Or rather, the club directors and Inzaghi do.”
“Had it been up to them, they probably would’ve rather signed someone who wasn’t over thirty and moved on to another target,” Biasin writes.
“But then they’re also dealing with the financial reality. In the absence of money to spend, there’s hardly a better player out there on the pitch.”
“How do we get past this impasse?” Biasin poses. “Simple. With results.”
“A few years ago more than a few fans turned up their noses when Antonio Conte arrived,” he notes. “But the fact that he didn’t arrive directly from Juve, and above all, the Scudetto made all of those things in the past disappear.”
“Now,” Biasin argues, “it will be up to Cuadrado to succeed in doing the same.”
