Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella says the mid-season sacking of Enzo Maresca and a transfer policy focused on youth have caused instability and hindered the club’s progress.
LONDON: Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella has pointed to managerial instability and a transfer policy centred on youth as key reasons behind the club’s recent struggles.
The Spaniard believes the mid-season departure of former boss Enzo Maresca has been particularly damaging. Maresca left Stamford Bridge by mutual consent on New Year’s Day after 18 months, with Chelsea fifth in the Premier League at the time.
His exit led to a caretaker stint from Under-21s coach Calum McFarlane before Liam Rosenior’s permanent appointment from Strasbourg. Cucurella acknowledged Rosenior’s ideas are good but lamented the timing of the change.
“These are decisions taken by the club. If you asked me, I would not have made this decision,” Cucurella told The Athletic. “To make a change like that, the best thing is to wait until the end of the season.”
He argued that a summer transition would allow a new manager a full pre-season. “The instability around the club comes from this, in a nutshell,” the 27-year-old added.
Since Rosenior’s arrival, Chelsea have won just four of their last 12 matches. They were humiliated 8-2 on aggregate by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League and have slipped to sixth in the Premier League.
Cucurella also questioned the club’s strategy of primarily recruiting younger players. He suggested it has left the squad lacking the experience needed to compete for major honours.
“We have a good core of players. The foundations are there,” he said. “But to fight for major trophies such as the Premier League or the Champions League, you need more.”
He highlighted the heavy defeat to PSG as evidence. “Against PSG, we lacked players that had gone through situations like that,” Cucurella stated.