Marc Cucurella and Nicolas Jackson of Chelsea
Fabrizio Romano has talked down the possibility of an exit for Marc Cucurella in the January transfer window, despite him being linked with a La Liga switch.
Earlier this month, TEAMtalk exclusively revealed that Chelsea are looking to offload as many as seven players in the coming windows who they deem to be surplus to requirements.
Cucurella’s name was on that list, although it appears the club have changed their stance since. The Spanish full-back endured a tough debut season at Stamford Bridge as he struggled to live up to expectations.
He was linked with a move away from the club in the summer, but this didn’t materialise in the end. Cucurella did showcase some signs of improvement under Mauricio Pochettino, but he has since been sidelined with an ankle injury.
The full-back is expected to be out of action until around March and Romano has confirmed that he won’t be going anywhere in the January window.
“Despite some recent reports, I can say no, Marc Cucurella will not go to Sevilla and he’s also currently injured so there’s nothing more to speak about on this at this stage,” Romano told his Substack column. “Marc will be out for some weeks and in any case, Sevilla is not a likely destination.”
Reports from Spain have linked Cucurella with Sevilla, but despite their reported growing interest, this deal doesn’t seem to be on the cards for January.
Cucurella’s market value has diminished
Given his underwhelming spell with Chelsea so far, it goes without saying that his market value will have diminished since his arrival from Brighton.
Chelsea spent around £62million on the Spanish full-back and they would likely only receive a fraction of that price if they were to sell him right now. The defender is under contract until 2028 and the club will be hopeful to see an upturn in form upon his return from injury.
Cucurella isn’t the only senior star that Pochettino hasn’t been able to rely upon of late as Chelsea have been hit harder than most Premier League sides this season.
While the first half of the campaign has been underwhelming, they have been unfortunate to lose several of their key men to injuries throughout the season.
“I have to be really honest and say I am upset – not frustrated because we knew this was going to be tough, but the circumstances have not been kind,” Pochettino told Sky Sports.
“Injuries make us to be a little bit delayed, and not progress in the way we wanted to, that is why we are late in our way to achieve things. I have no doubt we are going to be late, but we are going to perform and win games, and be in the position we deserve to be.”
