Micah Richards blames Chelsea for turning Euro 2024 star into a ‘laughing stock’
Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards has blamed Chelsea for turning Marc Cucurella into a “laughing stock” during his time at the club.
The Blues paid more than £60m to bring Cucurella from Brighton in August 2022 as they looked to improve their defence under the new ownership of a Todd Boehly-led consortium.
However, competition from Ben Chilwell, Levi Colwill and others saw Cucurella make just 21 Premier League appearances last term with the Spain international criticised for his performances under Mauricio Pochettino.
Enzo Maresca replaced Pochettino at the end of the season as the new Chelsea boss and there is uncertainty over the future of many players at Stamford Bridge.
But Cucurella will have helped his cause at Euro 2024 with the left-back one of Spain’s best players as they’ve reached the final, where they will face England on Sunday.
And Richards hailed Cucurella as “one of the best full-backs” at Euro 2024 and pointed the finger at Chelsea for his struggles at Stamford Bridge.
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“Marc Cucurella is a massive talking point,” Richards said on The Rest is Football podcast.
“At Brighton he was in a system, he could play as one of three centre-backs or at full-back and would always go forward and join in attacks.
“He looked like a really good player. He went to Chelsea and because it was so disorganised, he became a bit of a laughing stock.
“But in this tournament he’s been one of the best full-backs.”
Former England striker and fellow pundit Gary Lineker added: “It just shows you that when a club is in disarray, players suffer and it becomes really hard to perform in those circumstances.
“He’s had a really good tournament.”
Cucurella has been linked with a move away from Chelsea over the summer but the Spaniard has dismissed any chance of him moving.
The Chelsea left-back said: “When you go abroad it is difficult, people see Spanish football, the club they have supported since they were little, and they lose track of you a little.
“What we are doing is very nice, there are a lot of people enjoying it and if it goes well we have a couple of games left to finish with a great championship.
“Playing in La Liga is nice, it’s my home and I would stop speaking English for a while!
“Seriously, I’m very happy in England. It’s a very good experience for my family. London is a great city to be in for a few years and today I’m not thinking about any change because my family is very happy.”
