EFL Chairman Darragh MacAnthony has claimed on ‘The Hard Truth’ podcast that he is surprised Chelsea faced no real competition for the signing of Marc Cucurella this summer.
The Blues spent £63m with add ons included on a deal to bring the Spaniard to Stamford Bridge, with their run at the deal pretty much uncontested after they announced their interest.
Manchester City had been originally interested on striking a deal with Brighton, however the maximum amount they were willing to pay paled in comparison to what the Blues signed him for.
MacAnthony shocked City didn’t sign Cucurella
The Champions currently look a bit short for depth in the full back positions, with only Kyle Walker and Joao Cancelo as obvious options to feature out wide.
This left MacAnthony wondering why Pep Guardiola’s side didn’t put up more of a fight in negotiations, with Chelsea not fearing yet another hijack this time.
He said: “Man City amazingly didn’t pay the £50 million, they paid it for Walker, and they got £32 million for Zinchenko – who I didn’t think was worth £32 million by the way – and £18 million more they could have got a player who’s young and be with them for seven or eight years. I’m astonished City allowed that to happen.”
The Spain international made his Chelsea debut in the weekend’s victory against Brighton, with him managing to impress his manager Thomas Tuchel despite his appearance being brief.
With Ben Chilwell not being fully fit according to the German, there is a chance Cucurella is thrown into his first start for the massive London derby with Spurs.
Despite it being early in the season, Spurs look set to challenge to push above the Blues this season under Antonio Conte, and currently sit top of the league following an emphatic victory over Southampton in their opening league fixture.
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