Chelsea faced Barcelona in midweek in the Champions League, and while it was a huge game (and a huge win) for the club overall, it was especially important for one player.
Marc Cucurella is a former Barcelona player, produced in their academy, and for him it was personal.
Cucurella shines in attack and defence against his old club
Marc Cucurella's heat map against Barcelona.
Marc Cucurella’s heat map against Barcelona.
The Athletic’s piece about the full back notes that a source close to the player said he “had a point to prove”, and knew he had “an opportunity to draw attention from the Spanish media.”
He went into the game determined to show the club who let him go what he could do, with a burning flame in his heart.
It worked – Cucurella’s cross was deflected in for Chelsea’s first goal, and he ended up being named UEFA’s man of the match after keeping wonderkid Lamine Yamal quiet on our left flank.
“The source views this as the best moment in Cucurella’s career. Chelsea fans would not be surprised — they have seen his importance for a while now.”
The same source also notes that, as one of the senior players in the squad at 27, his experience is even leant on the sporting directors, who have “asked his thoughts on players the club are looking at signing.”
He’s a foundational piece of this squad now, and the £60m we paid for him has gone from looking excessive to looking like a bargain in the space of a couple of years.
In other news…
Chelsea and Arsenal had a combined XI for tomorrow’s game which featured Cucurella, showing just how good his form has been.
Despite Chelsea’s good form going into the game, things aren’t totally in their favour – one stats site reckons Arsenal have 5 of the 10 most in form Premier League players in their team.
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Arsenal vs. Chelsea combined XI.
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Enzo Fernandez celebrates at full time.