Tuesday 24 August, 2010
Blog: Krasic is no Nedved
Milos Krasic became Juventus’ biggest summer signing, but Serafino Ingardia believes it is wrong to crown him as the new Pavel Nedved
In Italy we often use a proverb to say when things are not like they appear. L'abito non fa il monaco. It literally means the suit doesn't make the monk but is more commonly translated as clothes don't make a man.
Now what Italian pundits and Juventus fans are doing here is mistaking the blond locks of Milos Krasic for the legendary mane of Pavel Nedved. To compare the two, like many have done recently, is unfair on both and will only end up putting more pressure on a player who is decent but not a champion. Someone may suggest that with a thatched wig Sebastian Giovinco may become the new Diego Maradona!
The Bianconeri long chased the Serbian winger and his decision to wait for the Old Lady is remarkable. However, we are talking about a player who is yet to prove himself at international level, let alone winning the Golden Ball like the Czech ace famously did.
Indeed, the €15m transfer fee, a third of what Juve paid for Nedved in 2001, is, in my opinion, out of proportion. The player didn't even have a great World Cup to justify his worth, but CSKA Moscow still beat Juve in the negotiations.
OK, the Bianconeri needed a signing and couldn't wait any longer but apart from the fact that this Krasic saga lasted far too long, let's look at the bigger picture. According to my sources, had Juve waited until the last day of the transfer market then they could have signed him for €3m less than the actual price.
Of course, Beppe Marotta wasn't willing to take the risk but had he waited until January, then the price would have dropped even lower considering that Krasic was approaching the end of his contract. In some ways, this deal recalls the one of another blond, Christian Poulsen, whose contract was also expiring but the Old Lady shelled out €8m because Claudio Ranieri could wait no longer.
What is done is done though and Gigi Del Neri finally got his much-requested winger. But will Krasic make such a huge impact in this formation? He is clearly better than Davide Lanzafame and Jorge Martinez, but I wouldn't rate him world class – nothing like Nedved for instance.
The Serbian has it all to prove at the Olimpico and, despite believing that he will be a good addition, I am pretty sure his performances will be far from phenomenal.
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