A lot can change in football in such a short space of time, so it’s very interesting to see the complete U-turn one Chelsea player has performed in 2024.
Chelsea is certainly a fast-paced club, both on and off the pitch, so keeping up is not easy for supporters. There’s been a gigantic overhaul of the squad during the two years of this ownership, plus there’s another new person in the manager’s dugout with Enzo Maresca appointed head coach in the summer.
Maresca’s to-do list to sort out during the international break includes working out the midfield puzzle, but there’s certainly plenty to be positive about from the opening weeks of the season. In particular, we’re starting to see some consistency with the starting line-up.
One Blues player has definitely gone from zero to hero in half a year…
Marc Cucurella performs a complete 180
If you rewind to the start of 2024, Marc Cucurella looked in a very tough spot as a Chelsea player. In fact, many felt like his days were numbered at Stamford Bridge.
Respected journalist Simon Phillips reported back in January that Chelsea were even open to selling Cucurella.
Now, the 26-year-old defender looks like a brand new player. We’d even argue that he’s one of the first names on the team sheet right now, forming part of the new-look defence.
Cucurella finished last season with an upturn in form, which then led into a memorable summer. The all-action left-back was a key player for Spain as they won Euro 2024, even assisting the winning goal against England in the final.
It’s perhaps no surprise that he’s returned for this new season with a spring in his step, and he’s started all three Premier League games so far under Maresca.
Marc Cucurella wins the battle against Ben Chilwell
There was a lot of back and forth at Chelsea for the left-back spot in the last two years, but eventually Cucurella has come out on top over Ben Chilwell. Remarkably, the latter’s now been completely frozen out of the first-team picture.
Cucurella is now firmly the first-choice left-back for the Blues. His understudy this season at full-back is new exciting youngster Renato Veiga.
For Chilwell, he’s been overlooked by Maresca because he doesn’t suit his style of possession-based football. There’s still speculation that the Englishman could leave this month, too.
TEAMtalk claims that Fenerbahce will make a fresh move to sign Chilwell from Chelsea this weekend.
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