Joao Cancelo is loving life at Manchester City
Manchester City FC via Getty Images
With the match certain to play a huge role in the destination of this season’s PremierPINC League title, it felt like the entire football-watching world had tuned in to watch Liverpool’s encounter with Manchester City this past weekend.
Ultimately, the 2-2 draw meant little changed in the race to become champions, but there were enough takeaway points that writers tasked with producing the usual “five things we learned from…” columns would’ve had a hard time whittling down their options to the required number.
However, there is little doubt as to what any Juventus fans watching would’ve chosen as their lead topic. Even with stars such as Kevin De Brunye, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden, Sadio Mane, Luis Diaz and – of course – Mohamed Salah in action, it was once again a star turn from João Cancelo that had Bianconeri supporters chattering.
The Portugal international was undeniably one of the most impactful players in this high stakes clash. He registered an assist for City’s second goal, while statistics taken from WhoScored.com show he also recorded three tackles, an interception, a clearances and two chances created for his team-mates.
Yet more than just the raw data, it was the manner of his performance that sparked debate. Even in a game with such pressure, Cancelo was effervescent. Perhaps the standout moment came in the 73rd minute when he dispossessed Salah easily, then shielded the ball from him before skipping away and going past Jordan Henderson, prompting the Egypt star to bundle him over.
That prompted UK commentator Martin Tyler to say that Cancelo was “too good to be a full-back,” and he’s probably right. At the very least, it is hugely reductive to label the 27-year-old in such a way, particularly on a day where both he and Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold dominated an entire flank single-handedly.
But let’s get back to those Juve fans, unhappy at seeing a player their club sold after just one season thriving in the colours of another club. Cancelo joined the Turin giants from Valencia in June 2018, costing a total of €40.4 million ($43.87m) and made 34 appearances in all competitions.
In that time he scored one goal, delivered five assists and produced countless moments which – like the one against Salah – were immediately shared on social media everywhere.
Yet in August 2019, the Bianconeri sold Cancelo. A statement on the Italian club’s website revealed that they received €65 million ($70.58m) but at the same time bought Danilo from Manchester City for €37 million ($40.17m).
There is absolutely no question that Cancelo is a better footballer than Danilo. To say otherwise is almost laughable. Very few people are making gifs of Danilo highlights, yet the Brazilian has been a vital contributor to Juve since that move.
He is a solid, dependable and reliable defender, blossoming into a leader who has unquestionably earned the love, support and trust of the Old Lady’s match-going supporters on the Curva Sud.
Yet every time Cancelo plays well, the same complaints are aired, as if the move happened in a vacuum and the Juve hierarchy decided to downgrade at right-back on purpose and with no other factors coming into play.
But of course that is not the reality. The reality is that, in the summer of 2019, a unique opportunity presented itself to Juventus, with Ajax Captain Matthijs de Ligt deciding that it was time for him to take the next step in his career.
The Dutch star could have chosen to join any of Europe’s top clubs, and every single one of them would have sacrificed their best full-back to make that deal happen. De Ligt was and is one of the best young talents in the world, the Kylian Mbappé or Erling Haaland of central defenders.
Such players do not come cheap, and with Cristiano Ronaldo’s enormous wages also on the books, Juve understandably had to make some difficult choices. The chance to make almost €30 million in profit from Cancelo became almost a no-brainer at that point, a choice that pretty much every sporting director in the world would have made.
As painful as it is to admit, it was the right choice and one that Juve would almost certainly make again. Did they lose a star player? Yes. Would they have preferred to have kept Cancelo? Probably.
But to complain about that in isolation is like writing a match report bemoaning the way that Liverpool lost the first half of the 2005 Champions League Final 0-3 and ignoring the fact they fought back and actually won the trophy.
But it was a move that facilitated the €75 million ($81.51m) acquisition of De Ligt, a player who is already crucial to the Old Lady and could be the bedrock of her defence long after Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci retire.
He has already proven his worth to Juve in the same way Cancelo has to City, in countless decisive moments that turned matches in favour of his side. Still only 22 years old, he is also constantly improving all facets of his game, and remains one of the brightest talents in the sport.
So next time Cancelo embarasses Mohamed Salah in front of a global audience, don’t be mad at Juventus for selling him, just enjoy it and remember that him wearing City blue is the reason Matthijs de Ligt is in black and white.
That’s a swap you make every single time.