Chelsea have kicked off their summer window in the last week with moves made for Marco Palestra, Maxence Lacroix, and Granit Xhaka – but how are Chelsea planning to replace Marc Cucurella?
Palestra has been spotted travelling to West London ahead of a £43m move to Chelsea from Atalanta. Lacroix is expected to complete a £50m move to Chelsea and BlueCo are preparing a second Xhaka bid.
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With Alonso taking office this week, Chelsea seem to have finally started their work in the transfer market. While Palestra, Lacroix, and Xhaka are impressive additions – if Chelsea get them – they aren’t left-backs.
Marc Cucurella remains Chelsea’s only major sale of the summer, joining Madrid for a £52m fee. Chelsea need to replace the Euro 2024 winner, and a new name has been linked with Chelsea over the weekend.
Chelsea’s plan with Pep Chavarria and Jorrel Hato
It has been reported that Chelsea are interested in signing Rayo Vallecano defender Pep Chavarria. The 28-year-old has impressed in Rayo’s side over the last 12 months, reaching the Conference League final.
Indeed, Chavarria played a key role as Rayo knocked BlueCo’s Strasbourg out of the semi-finals before losing to Crystal Palace. Nevertheless, Chavarria has caught the eye of Xabi Alonso and is now a target.
But Football London’s Bobby Vincent regarding Chavarria is interesting. He claims Chelsea do not see him as a direct replacement: “Understand Chelsea have an interest in Rayo Vallecano’s Pep Chavarria.
“I’m told he won’t be a direct replacement (if he is signed) for Marc Cucurella. Jorrel Hato set to be promoted and play a bigger role next season. Chavarria can play at left back and wing back.”
That suggests Hato will not be used as a centre-back next season, despite his improved form largely coming in the middle of the defence for Chelsea during the second half of the 2025-26 campaign.
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Comparing Pep Chavarria and Marc Cucurella’s form in 2025-26
Interest in Chavarria comes as a little bit of a surprise. He is not a typical BlueCo signing, given he is 28 and coming from what many would consider a lesser club. Chavarria has only ever played in Spain.
But a comparison between Chavarria and Cucurella’s stats from 2025-26 explains why Chelsea are looking at the left-back. Remarkably, the two defenders enjoyed largely similar numbers in their league form.
| Metric | Marc Cucurella (Chelsea) | Pep Chavarría (Rayo Vallecano) |
| Matches Played (Starts) | 34 (31) | 33 (29) |
| Total Minutes | 2,707 | 2,681 |
| Goals | 1 | 1 |
| Assists | 4 | 2 |
| Chances Created | 48 | 27 |
| Total Pass Volume | 1,580 | 1,081 |
| Pass Completion % | 84.1% | 84.6% |
| Accurate Crosses | 18 | 59 |
| Successful Dribbles | 11 | 17 |
| Total Defensive Contributions | 162 | 185 |
| Tackles Won | 40 | 54 |
| Interceptions | 29 | 31 |
| Clearances | 94 | 86 |
| Aerial Duels Won | 22 | 22 |
| Aerial Success Rate % | 44.4% | 41.5% |
It is a very similar breakdown in numbers. The big differences are that Cucurella created more chances, but in a Chelsea side dominating possession, it was always likely Cucurella would have a bigger number.
Rayo have bigger strikers than Chelsea, hence Chavarria is higher in terms of crosses. But the other stats are similar and that shows why Alonso and Chelsea want to bring the Rayo defender to West London.
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