Marc Cucurella at Chelsea: how the Spanish defender plays and why he has become one of the jewels of the market

Marc Cucurella became one of the designations of European markets 2022who was sought after by many of the strongest teams in English football, in a series of twists and turns that finally ends with he signs with Chelsea.

Formed in Barcelona’s Masia and with steps Eibar and Getafe in La LigaKoukourela arrived Brighton for the 2021-2022 season and was one of the Key pieces to one of the biggest revelations of the past Premier League: Played 35 games, all as a starter, and was the outfielder with the most minutes on the team (3,089).

Between his youth (just turned 24), interesting traits and having played for a mediocre club like Brighton, it was clear that Cucurella would be targeted by many more powerful teams in the latter market. And that’s exactly what happened: for several weeks he was wanted by them Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, so that Chelsea eventually took over his services. As his new left back he will take the place of his compatriot Marc Alonso.

How is Marc Cucurella playing?

But what exactly is it that seduces Cucurella? The truth is that the side is a very complete defender, who can provide solutions in attack and defense. Because although it is his ability on the opposite side that mainly stands out, it is still a good indicator: he does not have a good height (1.72 meters) but he has speed, physical strength and extremely quick reactions.

Cucurella plays with a lot of energy to rebound, push and transition. Defensively, he finished seventh (among 31 with at least 10 games) left backs in the last Premier League in terms of tackles (2.5 per game). It is aggressive and intense.

To this we must add his aforementioned qualifications to go on the attack. He’s not as decisive a shooter or a center, but he’s in the related game and to pass accuracyvirtues that would obviously be a perfect fit at Pep’s City.

Of the 31 left-backs listed, only Joao Cancelo and Andrew Robertson completed more short passes than the Spaniard. With the advantage that these are players who played for City and Liverpool, teams who obviously had far more possession than Brighton (although Graham Potter’s men excelled in possession).

In contrast, Cucurella appears much lower (14th) in terms of exact centers: Its theme is grass play. It’s not a pitcher, or at least it’s not for now.

In 2021-22, only champions Manchester City completed more short passes than Chelsea, so with that in mind, Cucurella’s fit into Tuchel’s scheme should be a positive one. The Catalan recorded 41 key passes in the last Premier League, the fourth highest percentage among defenders. A number that will definitely be able to stimulate the Blueswith far more attacking talent than Brighton.

When it comes to one-on-ones, Cucurella is fast and has some skill, but he’s not a specialist: finished 10th out of 31 left-backs in dribbles, but 14th in dribbles successfully.

The last point to mention about Cucurella is this it will have no problem fitting into the shape of the three center lines which Chelsea usually use, since although Brighton were alternating between four and five defenders, His most used role was precisely that of lane.