Jamie Carragher didn't hold back in his criticism of Marc Cucurella after the Chelsea player's errors led to two goals for Tottenham during Sunday's Premier League game.
The Blues faced Spurs in a London derby, and were shockingly two goals down within the first 11 minutes, with Cucurella responsible for both goals. Just five minutes into the game, he slipped while in possession of the ball, allowing Brennan Johnson to steal it and set up Dominic Solanke for the opening goal.
Shortly afterwards, Cucurella slipped again, failing to clear the ball and allowing Dejan Kulusevski to score. Following Kulusevski's goal, an irate Cucurella headed to the Chelsea bench to change his boots.
However, Carragher was unsympathetic, delivering a harsh assessment of the left-back's performance on Sky Sports. "Cucurella's coming to the bench. Don't blame anyone else it's your own fault son. Absolutely schoolboy stuff. Embarrassing," Carragher commented during his analysis of Kulusevski's goal.
"He slips again, we just seen that. There he goes again. Look at him shrugging his shoulders like it's not his fault. Blaming the boots. Did he not do a warm-up?"
Clinton Morrison was having none of it when it came to Cucurella's excuses on BBC Radio 5 Live, saying: "It is brilliant. Cucurella is blaming his boots. Look at yourself, you are the professional player. But from Kulusevski, that is a brilliant finish."
Cucurella was easily dispossessed on Sunday
Cucurella was easily dispossessed on Sunday (Image: Sky Sports)
Jadon Sancho managed to claw one back for Chelsea in style after he glided in from the left and buried the ball into the net, adding spice to what was already a riveting first 17 minutes.
While Carragher and Morrison didn't hold back in pointing fingers at Cucurella, Arsenal's Paul Merson offered a more understanding outlook during his discussion on Sky Sports. Merson sympathized with Cucurella’s situation, arguing that his teammates should take their share of the blame for allowing Tottenham's threat to manifest.
Merson told Sky Sports: "I feel sorry for him. He gives the ball away and Kulusevski picks it up. It's bad defending. Caicedo, it's the only thing he's done wrong. Cucurella, it looks like he kicks the back of his foot. He's 27, 28."
Chelsea went on to win the game 4-3, moving to within four points of Premier League leader Liverpool.