The main focus for Chelsea this summer has to be strengthening the squad. But unfortunately, at the moment, far too many players are being linked with moves away from Stamford Bridge. First, it was Enzo Fernandez, who has never openly ruled out the possibility, even though the noise has faded away with time. Lately, Joao Pedro’s name has been linked to FC Barcelona as an alternative to Julian Alvarez.
Speaking of Alvarez, he is someone Chelsea are believed to be interested in as well. But on the other hand, it looks like Atletico Madrid are looking to sign one of the Blues’ players.
It was a couple of days ago that reports emerged from Spanish outlets suggesting that Marc Cucurella would ‘1000%’ play in Spain next season. And now, there is confirmation from one of England’s most reliable.
According to Sky Sports, Atletico Madrid want to sign Cucurella from Chelsea this summer. Mathieu Alemany, the club’s current sporting director, had wanted him at Barcelona as well.
Why Marc Cucurella might be keen to leave
Cucurella is one of the players who has openly criticised the club’s transfer policy in recent years. And while the fans might agree with his sentiments, do they send another message.
Cucurella is in his prime right now. He would want to compete for trophies. But he has not been able to do that consistently at Chelsea.
If he is convinced that that won’t change, it is easy to see why a return to Spain would be attractive to him. It remains to be seen if Xabi Alonso’s arrival changes anything or not. It has been suggested that the incoming manager would want to keep Cucurella.
Chelsea continue to be linked with left-backs
Incidentally, Chelsea have been linked with quite a few left-backs in recent days. Lewis Hall of Newcastle United is said to be a candidate.
Earlier in the day, we also discussed a possible move for Alejandro Grimaldo. He played an integral role to Alonso’s success at Bayer Leverkusen and the manager might be keen on a reunion at Chelsea. There is nobody who can play that left wing-back role better.
One has to wonder what the timing of these rumours means. It has been suggested that Chelsea could be ready to say goodbye to a few big-name players this summer. Could Cucurella be one of them? More fingers are now starting to point in that direction.
Sourav Mahanty
Sourav Mahanty has covered teams like Chelsea, Celtic, Real Madrid, Manchester United, PSG and more over a career that has now lasted a decade. His work has been featured on Sports Illustrated, Athlon Sports, SB Nation, FanSided, The Sportster and aggregated through Bleacher Report and NewsNow. Outside of football, he is also interested in basketball, cricket and professional wrestling.
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