Inter Milan coach Simone Inzaghi is one of the chief sponsors of Juan Cuadrado as the 35-year-old veteran signs from Juventus.
This according to today’s print edition of Rome-based newspaper Corriere dello Sport, via FCInterNews, who report that the coach was very keen on bringing in Cuadrado on a short-term deal to bolster the options on the right flank for next season.
A report emerged yesterday that Inter have agreed a short-term contract to sign ex-Bianconeri, Chelsea, and Fiorentina wingback Cuadrado on a free transfer.
This certainly turned a few heads.
Whilst the move doesn’t seem overly surprising on the pitch – Cuadrado arrives without a transfer fee, on relatively low wages, and on a one-year deal and brings bags of Serie A experience – the off-the-pitch factors certainly make it a surprising move by the Nerazzurri.
Cuadrado will have to win over Inter fans who have had an antagonistic relationship with the Colombian over his nearly a decade at Juventus.
He will have to win over his new Nerazzurri teammates as well. The 35-year-old has clashed with Inter on many occasions on the pitch.
One person Cuadrado won’t have to win over, however, is his new coach Inzaghi.
Simone Inzaghi Wanted Juan Cuadrado At Inter Milan
According to the Corriere, Inzaghi has seen Cuadrado as a prospective target for a long time.
For the 47-year-old’s part, what matters is the Colombian’s quality and experience on the pitch.
Whilst mindful of what Cuadrado’s Juventus past means, he still sees the player as an excellent option on the pitch.
Even at 35, Cuadrado still has a good engine to get up and down his side of the pitch. And the ex-Chelsea and Fiorentina man’s deliveries into the box and range of passing haven’t gotten any worse with time.
Therefore, in a team that’s by and large getting a lot younger this summer, Cuadrado represents a new injection of Serie A experience. He is also a proven commodity.
Inzaghi wants to have a run at the Serie A title next season, no question.
And so the coach has prioritized the security of having a squad who he knows are at that level. Cuadrado represents a step in that direction, at least on paper. And his new coach is a big fan of that idea.
