* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 7 November 2025
Juan Guillermo Cuadrado Bello (born 26 May 1988) is a Colombian professionalfootballer who plays forSerie A clubPisa.[4] Known for his versatility, he usually plays predominantly on the right side of the pitch, as aright winger,right midfielder, orright wing-back.[5] He is known for his direct style of play, including his pace both on and off the ball, as well as his dribbling skills.
Having begun his career atIndependiente Medellín, Cuadrado moved to Italy in 2009 to joinUdinese. Used sparingly at the club, he wasloaned toLecce for the2011–12 season, where despiterelegation fromSerie A, his performance earned a transfer toFiorentina. In February 2015, he was signed byChelsea, but after playing sparingly, was loaned toJuventus for consecutive seasons, where he won successive Serie A andCoppa Italia titles. He joined the club permanently in 2017, and added a third consecutive domestic double the following season, followed by two more consecutive league titles and aSupercoppa Italiana over the next two seasons. In June 2023, after deciding not to extend his contract with Juventus, Cuadrado signed forInter Milan on a free transfer, agreeing to a one-year contract.[6] After missing most of the2023–24 season due to injuries, Cuadrado joined Atalanta as a free agent on a one-year deal.[7]
Cuadrado made his senior international debut forColombia in 2010, and has since earned over 110caps. He was part of the Colombian squads which took part at five editions of theCopa América (2011,2015,2016,2019 and2021), reaching the quarter-finals on three occasions, and contributing to their third-place finishes in 2016 and 2021; Cuadrado also represented his nation at two editions of theFIFA World Cup, in2014 and2018.[8]
Born inNecoclí, Cuadrado first form of football development wasn't until his mother suggested him the idea at the age of 12, joining Manchester F.C. Apartadó, a youth academy located inApartadó, Antioquia.[9] Consequently, his notable performances allowed him to join the youth setup ofDeportivo Cali after impressing their scouts.[10] Cuadrado later joined Atlético Uraba, where his preferred position was as aforward. However, on the recommendation of club founder Nelson Gallego, Cuadrado took on amidfielder role, usually as awinger. Cuadrado's confidence and ability in the position also allowed him to play occasionally as afull-back or wing-back. He later had a brief spell atColombian second division clubRionegro, where he languished on the bench under coach Víctor González Scott, but his potential was later recognized by manager Juan José Peláez ofIndependiente Medellín.
He was eventually signed by Medellin in 2008, allowing him to return to thefirst division. That year, Cuadrado made his senior professional debut againstBoyacá Chicó, a match in which he would also score his first goal. Cuadrado remained in Medellin until 2009, before making the leap to European football.[11]
On 2 July 2009, Cuadrado signed withSerie A clubUdinese on a five-year deal for an undisclosed fee.[12] He played his first match for Udinese in a 2–1 win againstChievo as a rightwing back. Cuadrado, however, was not given many first-team minutes for the rest of the season, and he would be sent onloan to fellow Serie A sideLecce.
On 3 August 2011, it was officially confirmed that Cuadrado would join Lecce for the2011–12 season.[13] He scored his first goal for the club againstCesena, the sole goal in a 1–0 victory. In spite of further impressive performances from Cuadrado, however, Lecce finished 18th and wasrelegated toSerie B. He would then return to Udinese. Around this time, he was watched by an unidentified English club who deemed that at 23 years he was too old to be signed by the club.[14]
On 23 July 2012, Cuadrado completed his move toFiorentina, initially in a temporary deal for a €1 million transfer fee.[15][16][17] He scored his first goal for theFlorence club in a 4–1 victory at home againstCagliari.[18] He finished the season with five goals and six assists, an integral part of a side that finished fourth inSerie A.[citation needed] In June 2013,La Viola purchased half of theregistration rights of Cuadrado for €5 million.[16]
On 11 February 2014, Cuadrado scored Fiorentina's second goal of a 2–0Coppa Italia semi-final second leg victory over his former club Udinese, securingLa Viola a 3–2 aggregate victory and a spot inthe final.[19] He was booked after scoring the winning goal, and suspended for the final,[20] which his team lost 1–3 toNapoli on 3 May.
On 16 June 2014, amid media speculation of a move to a larger club by the player, Fiorentina agreed a deal to purchase full ownership of Cuadrado's contract from Udinese, for an additional €12 million.[21][22]
Cuadrado awaiting his debut for Chelsea atVilla Park on 7 February 2015
On 2 February 2015,Premier League clubChelsea announced the signing of Cuadrado from Fiorentina on a four-and-a-half-year deal,[23]for a reported initial fee of £23.3 million, which could potentially rise to £26.8 million;Mohamed Salah went the other way on loan.[14] While in Fiorentina's financial filing of year 2014, in the management report (Italian:Relazione sulla Gestione), Fiorentina declared the fee was €30 million.[22] Upon signing, Cuadrado said, "I am very happy and thankful for this opportunity I've been given. This is a great club and honestly it is like a dream to join the Chelsea family and to know that the manager (José Mourinho) believes in me. I'm happy."[23] His Fiorentina manager,Vincenzo Montella, stated, "It was a sale that had to be done. Cuadrado is a player that has always arrived with a smile and given everything to Fiorentina – I'm happy for him because he is going to a big club."[14] Mourinho commented that he was not in a "rush" for Cuadrado to fully showcase his abilities within a short time, as stated in an interview: "He needs time to adapt to the Premier League. I know Italy and I know the difference between Italy and England; his formation, his development, his experience – everything was in Italy."[24]
Five days after signing, Cuadrado made his Chelsea debut after replacingWillian for the last ten minutes of a 2–1 win away againstAston Villa.[25] On 11 February, he made his first start in his first appearance atStamford Bridge, playing the first 70 minutes before being replaced byCesc Fàbregas in a 1–0 win againstEverton.[26] He won his first Chelsea trophy on 1 March as the club defeatedrival clubTottenham Hotspur 2–0 in theLeague Cup final, coming on in the 76th minute for Willian.[27]
On 3 May, Cuadrado made his only third start since his move to Chelsea, in theLondon derby match againstCrystal Palace, asRamires was taken ill before the game. At half-time, however, Cuadrado was substituted forMikel John Obi; Chelsea ended up claiming their fifth league title with a 1–0 victory.[28] Three weeks later, in the final match of the season againstSunderland, he won a penalty when fouled byJohn O'Shea, on whichDiego Costa evened the score in an eventual 3–1 home win, but he was later substituted when he was injured in the final minute of the first half.[29]
Cuadrado playing for Juventus againstCrotone in 2017
On 25 August 2015, Cuadrado signed a season-long loan deal withJuventus for €1.5 million.[30][31][32] He was issued squad number 16.[33] Five days later, he made his debut, as a 75th-minute substitute in a 2–1 defeat away againstRoma.[34] On 31 October, Cuadrado scored his first Juventus goal againstTorino to secure a 2–1 win in extra time at the end of theDerby della Mole.[35] On 16 March 2016, Cuadrado scored his first everUEFA Champions League goal in a 4–2 away defeat againstBayern Munich, in the second leg of the round of 16.[36] On 21 May, he came off the bench to set-upÁlvaro Morata's match-winning goal againstMilan in the 110th minute of extra time of the2016 Coppa Italia final, inRome'sStadio Olimpico; Juventus' 1–0 victory enabled the club to secure the domestic double for the second consecutive season.[37]
Cuadrado returned to Chelsea on 30 June 2016 and played a fewfriendlies for Chelsea, including the2016 International Champions Cup.[38] On 31 August, however, Cuadrado returned to Juventus on a three-year loan for €5 million per season, plus a conditional obligation to buy the full registration rights of Cuadrado from Chelsea for an additional €20 million (or €15 million and €10 million in the second and the third year of loan respectively), after certain sports related achievements.[39] Chelsea would also receive a maximum of €4 million bonuses, making the fee potentially raise to €29 million.[39] He was assigned thenumber 7 shirt at this time.[33] Cuadrado scored his first league goal in nine months on 5 February 2017, scoring the only goal in a 1–0 home win in aDerby d'Italia clash withInter Milan.[40]
On 22 May 2017, it was announced that Cuadrado had joined Juventus on a permanent deal for a preset price of €20 million until 2020, after a clause in his contract had been triggered (winning theSerie A mathematically in round 37).[41][42][43] In the2017 UEFA Champions League Final against defending championsReal Madrid on 3 June, Cuadrado came on as a substitute forAndrea Barzagli in the 60th minute, but was later controversially sent off after picking up two yellow cards, the second for an alleged stamp onSergio Ramos; Juventus lost the match 4–1.[44][45][46]
Following the arrival ofCristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid in 2018, Cuadrado allowed Ronaldo to wear the number 7 shirt, with Cuadrado reverting to number 16, saying onInstagram "It is better to give than to receive [...] Blessings to Cristiano in this new adventure".[33]
On 21 September 2019, Cuadrado made his 100th Serie A appearance with Juventus in a 2–1 home win overVerona, during which he won a penalty which was converted by Cristiano Ronaldo.[47] During the2019–20 season, under the club's new managerMaurizio Sarri, Cuadrado was often deployed as an attacking right-back.[48] On 3 November, he made his 150th appearance for the club in a 1–0 away win over cross-city rivals Torino in theDerby della Mole.[49][50] Later that month, he extended his contract with the club until 2022.[51] On 5 December 2020, Juventus won againstTorino by a score margin of 2–1, where Cuadrado assisted both the goals.[52] On 15 May 2021, he scored a brace in a 3–2 home victory over Inter Milan.[53] In the2020–21 season, Cuadrado earned the title of best assistman of theUEFA Champions League with six assists in six games.[54] On 5 December, Cuadrado scored anolympic goal in a 2–0 win againstGenoa.[55]
On 30 June 2023, Juventus bid farewell to Cuadrado after eight years with the club.[56]
On 19 July 2023, Cuadrado joinedInter Milan on a one-year deal.[57] In December 2023, Cuadrado suffered a surgery-requiring achilles tendon injury. His injury was operated inTurku, Finland by surgeon Lasse Lempainen in late December 2023.[58]
Cuadrado was in theColombian squad which reached the quarter-finals of the2011 Copa América in Argentina. His only appearance of the competition came in their last group match, a 2–0 victory overBolivia inSanta Fe, replacingFredy Guarín after 50 minutes.[62]
Cuadrado was named in Colombia's 23-mansquad for the2014 FIFA World Cup.[63] In the third group stage match, a 4–1 victory againstJapan, he scored the team's opening goal on apenalty kick.[64] He would end his World Cup campaign with four assists, tying withToni Kroos as the competition's assist leader.[65]
In the2018 FIFA World Cup, Cuadrado played all four games as Colombia reached the knock-out stage, where they lost toEngland on penalties in the round of 16.[69] He scored one goal, the final one in a 3–0 win againstPoland inGroup H.[69][70]
In June 2021, he was included in Colombia's squad for the2021 Copa América in Brazil.[72] On 23 June he assisted Colombia's opening goal, scored byLuis Díaz, in a 2–1 first-round loss to thehost nation.[73] He made his 100thcap for Colombia on 7 July, in thesemi-final match against Argentina which his side lost on penalties; he became the fifth Colombian player to enter theFIFA Century Club.[74] On 9 July, he scored Colombia's first goal from afree kick in a 3–2 victory overPeru in the third-place match.[75]
Cuadrado is known for his direct, offensive style of play along the right flank, and is capable of both scoring goals himself, courtesy of his striking ability from distance, as well as creating goalscoring opportunities for his teammates. He is capable of playing both as awide midfielder, or as awinger in an attacking trident, due to his ability to make attacking runs down the wing. He often deploys his speed, flair, and technical skills to beat opponents in one on one situations and create space and time for him to shoot on goal, or delivercrosses to strikers in the area. Due to his playing style, which frequently involves taking on full-backs on the flank, and subsequently running towards the touch-line to deliver balls into the area, he has been labelled one of the few "traditional" wide midfielders in the current game.[40][76][77][78][79][80][81][82]
Tim Vickery, a reporter on South American football, stated that as Colombia's defensive players played near the goal in order to cover for veteran centre-backMario Yepes, Cuadrado's pace, agility, creativity anddribbling ability on the rightwing moved the team forward at the 2014 World Cup.[14] Vickery also added that, in addition to his main role on the wing, Cuadrado is also adept as an attackingright back orwing back, due to his energy andwork rate, as well as his other aforementioned qualities; he has also been used in this position more recently at Juventus, under managersMassimiliano Allegri,[14][77][79][83]Maurizio Sarri,[48] andAndrea Pirlo.[84] A versatile player, he is also capable of playing on the left, a position which utilises him to cut into the middle and shoot on goal with his stronger, right foot.[14] In his early career, he was initially used as acentral ordefensive midfielder,[85] and was even deployed as an outrightforward orstriker;[11][86] he is also capable of playing as anattacking midfielder, or as asecond striker on occasion,[87][88][89] and has even been used as a more offensive-minded central midfielder at times, known as themezz'ala role, in Italian (which literally translates to "half-winger").[90]
Despite his talent and ability, Cuadrado's decision-making and reading of the game have been criticised at times in the media;[80][91] moreover, he has also drawn criticism at times from some in the sport for being inconsistent,[92] and for having an overly individualistic playing style.[93] In 2017, Mina Rzouki ofESPN FC noted that "Cuadrado has yet to learn the art of making decisive runs on a consistent basis. Still naive and capable of slowing down a game despite his pace, he does not boast the football intelligence of a world-beater."[94]
Cuadrado was born inNecoclí as the son of Marcela Bello Guerrero and Guillermo Cuadrado.[95] His father was shot by an armed gang when he was four years old.[96] His mother, who solely supported them working at a banana distributor, stated in an interview that Cuadrado had to be a perfect student in order to be able to play football.[95][96] As of July 2014,[update] Cuadrado lived with his family in Florence.[96] Cuadrado is a devoutChristian.[97]
Cuadrado was featured on the Latin American cover ofFIFA 16, alongside global cover star and football iconLionel Messi.[98]
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