Playing for 90
Fansided

Grading last summer’s Juventus transfers a year later

By John Vaccaro

MADRID, SPAIN - FEBRUARY 20: Cristiano Ronaldo of Juventus looks dejected during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 First Leg match between Club Atletico de Madrid and Juventus at Estadio Wanda Metropolitano on February 20, 2019 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by TF-Images/TF-Images via Getty Images)
MADRID, SPAIN - FEBRUARY 20: Cristiano Ronaldo of Juventus looks dejected during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 First Leg match between Club Atletico de Madrid and Juventus at Estadio Wanda Metropolitano on February 20, 2019 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by TF-Images/TF-Images via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 5
Next
ROME, ITALY – JANUARY 27: Juventus player Joao Cancelo celebrates 1-1 goal during the Serie A match between SS Lazio and Juventus at Stadio Olimpico on January 27, 2019 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Daniele Badolato – Juventus FC/Juventus FC via Getty Images)
ROME, ITALY – JANUARY 27: Juventus player Joao Cancelo celebrates 1-1 goal during the Serie A match between SS Lazio and Juventus at Stadio Olimpico on January 27, 2019 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Daniele Badolato – Juventus FC/Juventus FC via Getty Images) /

Joao Cancelo: B+

This may be a controversial take, but in my opinion Joao Cancelo was the best signing that Juve made last summer. One of the squad’s biggest holes coming into the summer transfer window was a lack of a reliable right back, but they wasted no time remedying that when they brought in Cancelo before the end of June. It didn’t take long to see that his 40 million euro transfer fee would be worth it. He gave Juventus the dynamic attacking threat they have lacked for most of the last decade. He also showed defensive improvements during the season, but his biggest moments of the year came in the attacking half.

He played a beautiful ball to assist the winning goal against his former club, Inter Milan, in December. The highlight of his season came in the second leg against Atletico Madrid. After being left out of the squad for the first leg (whether it was because of his health or a mistake by Allegri), he was added to the lineup for the home leg with Juve needing to recover from a 2-0 deficit. His introduction to the lineup was massive for Juve’s comeback. He was a nightmare for Atletico’s defense and kept their left side pinned back throughout the match, allowing Juve to control the match. His performance in that match was a perfect depiction of what he brings to the table for Juventus. He didn’t stop there, providing the game-tying assist in the first leg against Ajax.

Now it is being reported that he could be sold for a 10 million euro profit just one year after he joined Juve. I believe this would be a huge mistake as he looks like a player that could be an important part of this squad for years to come. His first season at Juventus can’t be considered anything other than a success and it should only be the first of many.

Home/Serie A