It all started with such promise. Milos Krasic arrived at Juventus in the summer of 2010, an exciting pacey winger who was immediately hailed as the “new Nedved.” In retrospect, perhaps that label did more harm than good. Indeed, they really were only similar in a few aspects: they were both wingers, they both hailed from the eastern part of Europe, and they were both blondes.
Despite this, some fans truly thought Milos was to become Nedved Part Deux, as he inspired the Juventus faithful with his first few performances. He started off with an assist in an exciting 3-3 draw with Sampdoria, and then upped that number to two assists in the next match against Udinese. One week later, at home against Cagliari, Milos peaked and scored a hat trick.
Krasic’s autumn of hope only lasted for a few weeks, and he would soon be brought down by a suspension for diving. With that suspension, he also lost the ability to play without getting consistently fouled. Referees no longer trusted Milos, and opposing defenders exploited this and fouled him mercilessly at times. This, coupled with the exhaustion of his frankly limited set of tricks, led to a stunning drop in his form as the season went on.
The then Juve coach Luigi Delneri continued to start Milos regardless of his poor form, hoping in vain that he would break through whatever was obstructing his play. Barring a goal against Genoa in November, Krasic went without scoring or assisting a goal from the middle of October to the beginning of February. He would chip in another pair of goals (one against Brescia and one against Roma, respectively) before the season ended.
Delneri was ousted, and former club captain Antonio Conte was brought in. We all know what Conte did, how he led a re-invigorated Juventus squad to an undefeated Scudetto triumph.
However this triumph was not without casualties. Amongst said casualties was none other than Milos Krasic’s Juventus career.
See, when new coaches come in they often re-design the squad and almost always bring in their own tactical framework. Delneri had his 4-4-2 which was based on quick, incisive counter attacks. Milos was perfect for this, as he could run past defenders or even better yet, find a bit of space and get a shot off. He was not very good at running at defenders, and even under Delneri he would often fail when in such a situation.
Conte’s possession based, short pass game erased the need for Milos Krasic at Juventus. Granted, Milos was more or less a first choice player for the first few weeks of Conte’s inaugural season, but he quickly lost that spot. His only bright moment came when he started against Catania in September and scored a goal that arguably saved Juve’s undefeated season.
Krasic suffered a family tragedy shortly after that. His father and uncle had been driving (in Serbia) and they got into a fatal car accident that took his uncle’s life and seriously injured his father. Krasic took a leave of absence from Juventus, and when he returned, he was no longer in Conte’s plans. He suffered as a glorified reserve player, despite numerous calls from the fans to play him, until January, when he was subbed in against Cagliari and missed a sitter.
Days later, against Roma in the Coppa Italia he missed a ridiculously easy goal from point blank range. It was a definitive sign that his confidence had been wrecked by the turbulent few months he had gone through.
It was also around this time that Milos refused several offers to leave on Turin on loan at several different clubs, as he wanted a full transfer. While he then had to languish on the bench for several more months, he also got to take part in Juve’s Scudetto celebrations. Some may not have recognized Krasic due to his new – and very unflattering – facial hair, but for those of us who had known what Milos went through, it was nice to see him get to celebrate for once this year.
It was quite well known that Milos and his agent would seek a move out of Turin this summer, and many Juve fans wanted Milos to move on to a different club that he would be better suited for, but for most of the summer mercato it seemed no one wanted Milos. Or at least no one wanted him for the price Juve were seeking.
Milos took matters into his own hands during Juve’s friendlies. First he scored a beauty of a goal against Hertha Berlin, and then he scored a last minute game tying goal against Benfica, to finish the match 1-1. Shortly after those goals his transfer situation began to improve. Krasic had righted the sour exit he had been heading for at Juventus with those goals.
Within a few days, a move had been agreed to Fenerbahce, to the price of seven million euros. The payment would be spread out over two seasons, and Milos also signed a four year deal. Before he left, Krasic thanked the Juventus fans for their faith in him, and said that he would always remember the good times he had at Juve. It was truly a graceful exit.
Some may call Milos a bust, but that is unfair to both Beppe Marotta and to Krasic himself. At the time his transfer was a very good one, and he was a great fit for Delneri’s system. He was merely a victim of tactical change, and his ouster from the first team also damaged his transfer value. So from a financial point of view, yes, Juve lost money on this deal. However that was not due to a depreciation of ability, but rather just the economics of football. Milos now moves on to Turkey, where he hopes to find success with Fenerbahce, barring any attacks from ex-teammate Felipe Melo who is now with Galatasaray.
The game against Sampdoria actually finished 3-3.Good article none the less