Marc Cucurella has broken ranks to publicly criticise the Chelsea hierarchy's approach to player recruitment and say that Enzo Maresca shouldn't have been sacked
Marc Cucurella of Spain attends the press conference
Marc Cucurella spoke his mind on Chelsea's situation(Image: Javier Borrego/Europa Press via Getty Images)
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Chelsea's policy of prioritising youth over experience in player recruitment is jeopardising their chances of winning major trophies, according to Marc Cucurella. The Blues are still reeling from their 8-2 thrashing at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League and Cucurella has voiced his concerns in a remarkably honest fashion.
The honeymoon stage of Liam Rosenior's stint as manager has ended, with Chelsea being brought back to earth with a bump in four straight defeats. They have won only four of their last 12 matches in all competitions, have been dumped out of the Champions League and sit sixth in the Premier League.
Rosenior was recruited from Chelsea's sister club Strasbourg in January after the sacking of Enzo Maresca. He made a strong start but things have started to unravel recently, with the squad's inexperience clear in the dismantling by PSG.
Having been level at 2-2 at the Parc des Princes, the away side capitulated to lose the first leg 5-2 and were then hammered 3-0 at Stamford Bridge. Cucurella believes the blames lies, not with Rosenior, but with owners BlueCo, and their insistence on signing potential in the transfer market.
“I understand this is part of the club’s policy, and that they want to take this direction — signing young players and looking to the future. But, for all of us who are still here and want to win big things, moments like this make you feel discouraged," he told The Athletic while on international duty with Spain.
“We have a good core of players. The foundations are there. But to fight for major trophies such as the Premier League or the Champions League, you need more. Signing young players only might complicate achieving those goals. Against PSG, we lacked players that had gone through situations like that.
“You need time as well, and I know the young players are the ones that will have the experience in the future. But you need to find the balance between both worlds.”
Enzo Maresca
Enzo Maresca was sacked in January(Image: Getty Images)
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Cucurella describes Rosenior as "a very good person" who "has been great at handling the group" but feels Chelsea haven't had enough time to implement his ideas on the training pitch. Tellingly, the left-back says that the club's hierarchy pulled the trigger too early on Maresca, who lasted less than two years in the hot seat.
“The moment Maresca left, it had a big impact on us," Cucurella said. "These are decisions taken by the club. If you asked me, I would not have made this decision. To make a change like that, the best thing is to wait until the end of the season. You would give everyone, the players and the new manager, time to get ready, have a full pre-season…
“The instability around the club comes from this, in a nutshell. We had a caretaker (former under-21s coach Calum McFarlane) first, then a new manager, with new ideas and no time to work on them. It is what it is.”
Chelsea Manager Liam Rosenior
Pressure mounted on Liam Rosenior after the PSG thrashing(Image: Shaun Brooks/Getty Images)
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Cucurella drew a comparison with rivals Arsenal, who are nine points clear at the top of the Premier League, having stuck by Mikel Arteta for six and a half years, despite a lack of silverware.
The 27-year-old joined Chelsea from Brighton in a £63million deal back in August 2022. But like Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez, there is doubt surrounding his future heading into the summer transfer window.
Asked what he would do if Barcelona came calling, he replied: "It would be difficult to refuse. It's not just about me. I'd have to think about my family. If it happens, it happens, and we'll see what decision is made."
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