According to reports in the Telegraph from yesterday evening, Chelsea are in talks to sign Fiorentina star Juan Cuadrado in the upcoming days of the January transfer window. Cuadrado was linked heavily with Manchester United in the summer but the Colombian, who had a dazzling World Cup in Brazil, preferred to stay in Italy.
The 26 year old then signed a contract extension with the Viola and his release clause now stands at €35m (£26m). Matt Law in his report in the Telegraph writes that Cuadrado was a priority signing for Chelsea in the summer. But with Wolfsburg and Borussia Dortmund’s interest in Andre Schurrle and Roma’s insistence to sign outcast Mohammed Salah, the Blues have now aimed to sign Cuadrado in a January move.
However any move for Cuadrado will mean both Schurrle and Salah leave the Stamford Bridge side this month. Daily Mail though report that Chelsea’s offer of £20.6m was rejected meaning Fiorentina are unwilling to lower their asking price for the wideman.
Despite not being in good form this season, Cuadrado can play on either flank and can also operate as a wing-back. Thus he will bring much needed versatility that Jose Mourinho wants in his side for a quadruple title charge this season.
Gianluca Di Marzio staff David Amoyal has a recent update on the situation claiming that Cuadrado’s agent is heading to London to hold talks over the transfer move.
Cuadrado’s agent heads to London to meet with Chelsea http://t.co/tfiC5TlQko
— David Amoyal (@DavidAmoyal) January 22, 2015
The report claims that Cuadrado’s agent, Alessandro Lucci, went to London after completing Luis Muriel’s move to Sampdoria from Udinese a few days back. Moving to London will be a fascinating prospect for Cuadrado and the transfer could very well happen in the coming days. This comes despite Fiorentina manager Vincenzo Montella making it clear he doesn’t want to lose his prized asset “As of today, there is no possibility Cuadrado will leave Fiorentina.”
Chelsea’s clever handling of transfer policy certainly means that they are following one ‘out-one in’ to avoid Financial Fair Play regulations. Wolfsburg are reportedly ready to pay £23m for Schürrle, but the German international would prefer to join Dortmund. Moreover, Roma could also offer a small fee to take Salah on loan for the rest of the season with the option to then sign him for around £12m in the coming summer.
Thus Manchester United’s loss could well become Chelsea’s gain as Cuadrado would bring enormous pace on the right flank and is also very agile possessing great finishing instincts. His dazzling dribbling ability and raw speed will be an added bonus for any club who acquires his signature.
A brilliant passer with great vision, he rarely gives the ball away. Moreover his ability to cut inside from the wings and taking the opposition players on either on the inside or the outside will make Chelsea even more dangerous with Eden Hazard and Diego Costa up front.
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