What does Cuadrado's exit mean for the future?

[James 5,331]

Juan Cuadrado joined Chelsea in January for a little over £23million, and signed a four-and-a-half year deal. After paying so much money for the player, it was surprising how little he was used. Now, he’s been shipped off on a season-long loan to Juventus.

Cuadrado's spell at Chelsea was short lived to say the least, and he has now returned to Italy as they look to rebuild their side following some high-profile departures. Despite the likes of Carlos Tevez and Arturo Vidal exiting Turin, though, Massimiliano Allegri's men still head the Serie A betting even though they did suffer defeat in their opening game of the season against Udinese. This is due to the results of the other opening games.

Fortunately for Juventus, their other main rivals for the league title also had a shaky start to the campaign. In the opening games, Roma drew with Verona, and Milan and Napoli both lost their matches to Fiorentina and Sassuolo, respectively.

Cuadrado will be looking to try and make an immediate impact and get his career back on track after a disappointing time in London. The Colombian winger had an excellent World Cup (see below), where he tied with Toni Kroos of Germany as the competition's assist leader. His performances in the competition will have been a big factor behind Jose Mourinho's decision to sign him for Chelsea.

Perhaps the main reason as to why Cuadrado failed to make a serious impact at Chelsea was because the squad that went on to win the league title were just too strong. His natural position would be as a right winger but he can also play as a right-back. In the Chelsea team that won the league Cuadrado would have had to have displaced Branislav Ivanovic or Willian, both of whom were key components to the side. He only managed four Premier League starts for the club.

There is a chance that this loan move could be a tactic to curry favour with the Italian side before they make a move for their prized midfielder, Paul Pogba. This is purely speculation at the moment but according to The Daily Mirror, Chelsea are planning to splash big cash for the highly-rated French youngster.

This move could end up being very beneficial to Cuadrado's career. In the Juventus team it is likely that he will see a lot more first-team action than he would have done at Chelsea. As the Italian side are also looking to defend their title he will get some experience of playing for a big club under pressure. And there is a lot of pressure. Last season, Juventus came so close to winning the treble of the domestic league, domestic cup and European Cup, but lost out in the Champions League final to Barcelona. After Cuadrado's loan move is complete, he may be able to come back to England and make a proper case for his inclusion in the Chelsea team.

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