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Cristiano Ronaldo lives up to his reputation as the best player of the match, but the progress of his Portuguese compatriots is even more impressive
Letting Dani Alves leave for Juventus in 2016 was one of the biggest mistakes of Barcelona. Not replacing him with Joao Cancelo, however, was an even worse decision.
The Portuguese back was only 22 years old at the time, but after his first season in Spain with Valencia, it was obvious that he had the pace and skills needed to make up his mind. flourish in a team as adventurous as the Blaugrana.
Indeed, Cesare Prandelli spent only three months at the head of Los Che at the end of 2016, which gave him ample time to realize that Cancelo was a special player.
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"It is clear that he can become champion," predicted the former Italian coach at the time. "He has unlimited potential and is not an ordinary back wing, in many ways he is unique.
"He pushes a lot forward, has excellent physical attributes and is very good at the technical level, he dribbles like an attacker and is sometimes found blocking a ball in the opponent's area with the ability to play." ;an attacker.
"It's a boy who still needs to become a more complete player, but he has an incredible talent."
So talented that it is remarkable that Juve has had so little competition for its services during the summer. In 2016, Barcelona had considered replacing a player by Martin Montoya as having "DNA Barca", but this time, the Catalans could not be found.
The defender's agent, Jorge Mendes, pushed his client to the newly-promoted Premier League pet project, Wolves, but Cancelo was right to think that he was ready to play for a team of the Champions League.
Inter also wanted it, as Cancelo had enjoyed a successful loan season in San Siro last season, but the Nerazzurri simply could not afford to spend money to make his stay in Milan permanent because of their difficulty in complying with UEFA's financial fair play. (FFP) requirements.
Juve has fully exploited Inter's financial restrictions, as well as the bizarre lack of interest of the European elite, to sign Cancelo with the least hbadle for a € 40 million deal (35). £ million).
For a long time, it seemed that for the fans as for the journalists, the most interesting aspect of the transfer of Cancelo was that it had led to the arrival of his compatriot, Cristiano Ronaldo, in Turin.
"It all started with the contract with Cancelo, who has the same agent as Ronaldo, Mendes," then explained former Juve general manager Beppe Marotta.
"When we realized that we could seize this opportunity, the shareholders agreed to support the club."
Thus, the wheels were set in motion on the biggest contract in the history of Juve; this could also prove to be the best, both from a sporting and commercial point of view.
After all, the social media numbers of the Bianconeri have exploded, the "CR7" shirts are still flying off and the goals are running (10 in all competitions, including five badists).
But then, none of this is surprising. Juventus has always thought about buying the best player in the world. What they did not know was that in Cancelo they also bought the best right-hander on the planet.
That the 24 year old player is a player of enormous potential was indisputable. Juve kept a close watch on Cancelo's return to Giuseppe Meazza last season, helping Inter to return to the Champions League with a well-disputed fourth place finish in Serie A.
However, while he did not doubt his numerous forces from an offensive point of view during his temporary stay in San Siro, worries persisted as to his defensive work.
When he arrived at Juve in the summer, he had the feeling that it would take time for Cancelo to know when to bombard forwards and when to restrain himself, just as he had with his equally aggressive teammate. Alex Sandro.
The Brazilian had to study the defensive movements of Patrice Evra during his first season in Turin before he really won out as a world-clbad defender in his second term. Cancelo, however, is already ahead of schedule in this regard.
Offensively, it has been predictably excellent for Juve. Only Federico Chiesa has made more dribbling than Cancelo (28) in Serie A this season, while he has 33 in all competitions. In contrast, Bayern Munich right-back Joshua Kimmich has 15, although he has played seven other matches.
In addition, Cancelo also ranks third among Serie A defenders in terms of chances created (17) and fifth for successful centers (12).
However, what is most striking about Cancelo is how it has improved in terms of defense, both in terms of positioning and reading the game, as evidenced by the fact that he has already made 74 recoveries – just seven less than Kalossou Koulibaly, the center of the center of Naples, and three fewer outings.
Cancelo just did not show the same diligence last season, even though Juventus coach Mbadimiliano Allegri is reluctant to make comparisons or make big claims about his signing for summer.
"I do not know about last year," Allegri said. JTV After Cancelo played an important role in Juve's victory in the Champions League against Valencia in the first day.
"I know that this year he has already improved a little, but he still needs to improve because he has extraordinary qualities.
"He's still missing something to be the best in the world."
Allegri is now part of the minority. After a series of regular protests against Udinese last month, former center-half Daniele Adana of Italy could barely contain his enthusiasm for what he had just seen.
"Cancelo is the best right back in the world right now!" Said he. "For Allegri, he's like a winger added!
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"He speaks the language of number one and he raises the level of Juventus among the top four to five teams in Europe." Just like Ronaldo, basically.
Cancelo may not get as much praise as his compatriot, but he's just as influential – and for about a third of the price.
The Barca has yet to replace Dani Alves, but Juventus has already done so.
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