Juan Cuadrado

[DaSpurs]

Playing devil's advocate here, is it not sort of admitting defeat to just say 'black players should avoid Russia like the plague'? It's quite a regressive attitude, and is likely to ensure there is no change in the systemic racism which is obviously there. Jus' sayin'.

I completely agree with you, and in fact I even hesitated with my comment on such a premise. I'm actually glad to see someone step up to bring it up.

However, it is not the responsibility of the players or their families to instigate eventual change. I think we can all appreciate what football can do to eliminate racism, but I hope for a more long term approach by exposure than putting some of these players directly in the face of harm. If they are willing to undertake such a move in their journey through life in full knowledge of what transgressions they may risk facing while there, then I fully support them in it. Props to them even. But the extent and degree to which dark-skinned players go there and want right back out shortly after is quite alarming. When there are so many parties far closer to the players and far more interested in their own pockets than these players' integrities and lives, and since footballers are not always the most educated and aware people on earth, I feel more people should stand up in defense of these guys and inform them of the risks of going to arguably the most racist and hateful place on earth.

 

[Snarfalicious]

Scored this goal the other day:


Also, a nice write-up from WhoScored.com: http://www.whoscored.com/Articles/j95fyknldki5vnn26m26kg

Highlights:

After giving what Fiorentina owner Andrea Della Valle called a “stellar” performance in the team’s season opener in Serie A, a 2-1 win over Catania at the Artemio Franchi, La Gazzetta dello Sport’s Luca Calamai wrote: “If Gareth Bale is worth more than €100m, Fiorentina can start doing the math on how much Cuadrado is worth. At least €50m? Maybe even more.”

That’s Baleconomics for you. Barcelona and Bayern Munich have supposedly been watching the 25-year-old, for whom football is “happiness and allegria." If their scouts were in attendance on Monday night then, like Della Valle, they’ll have left impressed.

Cuadrado was many people’s Man of the Match. Only Edinson Cavani picked up more of those awards in Serie A last season [8]. Cuadrado's WhoScored rating on Monday night was 8.15. Last season's most successful dribbler in Italy [completing 118] managed to accomplish another 5, tormenting Catania left-back Fabian Monzon. Twice the Colombia international burst past him in the first half, his mop-like hair blowing in the wind, and each time he got to the byline, pulling the ball back into the danger zone.

As he rolled the Nike Incyte into the penalty area, panic spread. Cuadrado’s teammates took advantage. Giuseppe Rossi swept in one of his cut-backs to score his first competitive goal after 18 months out with injury and when Catania failed to clear another, David Pizarro picked it up on the edge of the box and blasted a shot into the top corner. Cuadrado, incidentally, was the only player to attempt more than one cut-back in Serie A on the opening weekend - no one tried more than 10 over the entirety of the 2012-13 campaign.

 

[DaSpurs]

So does this guy ever play on the left, or just the right? Who plays in the spot left behind by Ljajic for Fiorentina?

 

[Syn_13]

After giving what Fiorentina owner Andrea Della Valle called a “stellar” performance in the team’s season opener in Serie A, a 2-1 win over Catania at the Artemio Franchi, La Gazzetta dello Sport’s Luca Calamai wrote: “If Gareth Bale is worth more than €100m, Fiorentina can start doing the math on how much Cuadrado is worth. At least €50m? Maybe even more.”

That’s Baleconomics for you. Barcelona and Bayern Munich have supposedly been watching the 25-year-old, for whom football is “happiness and allegria." If their scouts were in attendance on Monday night then, like Della Valle, they’ll have left impressed.

Baleconomics. So that's what it's now called. They're fond of this notion in Italy. Juve have been using the "If Bale is worth €100m..." line when clubs sniff around Pogba.