Juan Cuadrado saw his contract with Juventus get prolonged thanks to an automatic clause once he made his 40th appearance last season. The event put a bow on the talks between the player and the management. The directors had been trying to extend it but lowering his yearly salary.
The negotiation has not reprised afterward. There is reportedly lingering tension between the parties. The management wanted to tack a further year to his deal at €3M wages. Instead, the activation of the option currently has him earn €5M.
According to Corriere dello Sport, Juventus are open to letting Cuadrado go for a decent offer. The contacts with his agent Alessandro Lucci have been frequent. He is also handling the potential acquisition of Filip Kostic from Eintracht Frankfurt. Roma could be interested in the Colombian veteran since they in the hunt for a player in the role, SportMediaset informs.
If the Bianconeri parted ways with the 34-year-old, they would go all-in on Nahuel Molina, the outlets inform. His price tag is around €30M, though. Udinese director Pierpaolo Marino told TuttoSport over the weekend.
“It will be tough to keep him since he is drawing plenty of interest. I wish an Italian team signed him to valorize him. I think the Bianconeri have the means to do it.”
Our Take on the Friction Between Juventus and Cuadrado
It would be strange if the Old Lady got rid of a player that has been indispensable in multiple roles in recent campaigns. On the other hand, the rumors add up. Considering that Mattia De Sciglio is about to re-up, they would not need to go after another right-back, and the chatter about their interest in Molina and Raoul Bellanova has been insistent. That would make more sense if Cuadrado did leave Juventus.