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1 month ago
17 Enzo Maresca was full of praise for Marc Cucurella ahead of Saturday’s game against Brighton and believes he’s making the players around him better.
Chelsea paid more than £60m to sign Cucurella from Brighton in 2022 and he struggled in his first season at Stamford Bridge and was even booed by his own fans as the Blues slumped to a 12th placed finish.
Cucurella was close to joining Manchester United on loan last summer, but he ended up staying at Chelsea and has a good campaign, especially the final six games of the season.
Maresca a big fan of Cucurella
With Chelsea struggling in a game against Aston Villa, Mauricio Pochettino made a tactical switch which saw Cucurella invert into midfield when the team were in a possession, a role he instantly took to.
The Spain international looked like a player reborn and carried that form onto the international stage with Spain where he shone as they won Euro 2024.
Cucurella has established himself as a key player for Chelsea. (Photo by Robin Jones/GettyImages)Cucurella is now one of the first names on the team sheet and has established himself as Chelsea’s first choice left back and a key player for the club.
The 26-year-old, who has transformed his Chelsea career is now very much a fan favourite and Maresca was full of praise for him ahead of the game against his former side Brighton.
“Marc is very important, Marc has something you sometimes struggle to find in players,” he told reporters.

 
“Marc is good, he is also making good the players around him because he is a guy that is always talking, always demanding and when you have five, six or seven players like Marc, always talking and improving the other players, it is something important. I’m very happy with Marc.”
Cucurella was given the night off against Barrow in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, but he’s expected to be restored to the line-up against his former club as Chelsea look to make it three league wins in a row, and give Enzo Maresca his first league win at Stamford Bridge.
