9 hours ago, Sexyfootball said:

My alternative viewpoint is that the club has realised that he is a pretty limited left back, and that they got done not only on the fee but also on the wages, so they have tasked Maresca with trying to hide all that by using him in a different way on the pitch that masks all his deficiencies behind a veneer of "activity" and "innovative tactics", with the end game being to sell him back to one of the big Spanish clubs next summer 😎

I don’t think he’s limited and he can play the normal left back role as he’s already shown but there’s no denying he just offers more going forward so would be a waste not to make use of it.

Also either Mardrid or Barca would be able to afford/entertain the fee we would ask of Cucurella even if we were to sell anyway.

1 minute ago, Remodez said:

I don’t think he’s limited and he can play the normal left back role as he’s already shown but there’s no denying he just offers more going forward so would be a waste not to make use of it.

Also either Madrid or Barca would be able to afford/entertain the fee we would ask of Cucurella even if we were to sell anyway.

Have a look at his Whoscored season PL ratings.

6.65 in 22/23

6.81 in 23/24

6.54 in 24/25

These are the scores of a bang average left back. Heaven knows how low he would be in 24/25 without the three goals he has scored.

I know we would ask for a big fee - hence why I said one of the big Spanish clubs 😃

Edited February 28, 20251 yr by Sexyfootball

34 minutes ago, Sexyfootball said:

Have a look at his Whoscored season PL ratings.

6.65 in 22/23

6.81 in 23/24

6.54 in 24/25

These are the scores of a bang average left back. Heaven knows how low he would be in 24/25 without the three goals he has scored.

I know we would ask for a big fee - hence why I said one of the big Spanish clubs 😃

We can only hope the scouts of Real and Barca don't base their recommendations on the "Whoscored" ratings.

10 hours ago, Sexyfootball said:

My alternative viewpoint is that the club has realised that he is a pretty limited left back, and that they got done not only on the fee but also on the wages, so they have tasked Maresca with trying to hide all that by using him in a different way on the pitch that masks all his deficiencies behind a veneer of "activity" and "innovative tactics", with the end game being to sell him back to one of the big Spanish clubs next summer 😎

Alternatively, Maresca has realised that no attacking player is capable of hitting a barn door with a banjo and has tasked Cucurella to help the team by scoring goals. 🐧

Just now, RMH said:

Alternatively, Maresca has realised that no attacking player is capable of hitting a barn door with a banjo and has tasked Cucurella to help the team by scoring goals. 🐧

In that case he can leave with Cucurella LOL

39 minutes ago, Sexyfootball said:

Have a look at his Whoscored season PL ratings.

6.65 in 22/23

6.81 in 23/24

6.54 in 24/25

These are the scores of a bang average left back. Heaven knows how low he would be in 24/25 without the three goals he has scored.

I know we would ask for a big fee - hence why I said one of the big Spanish clubs 😃

Nobody who actually looks for these ratings information takes whoscored seriously. It’s a very poor system thats heavily influenced by goal contributions.

Sofascore and others has him in the range of 6.8 to 7 for all 3 seasons.

1 minute ago, Remodez said:

Nobody who actually looks for these ratings information takes whoscored seriously. It’s a very poor system thats heavily influenced by goal contributions.

Sofascore and others has him in the range of 6.8 to 7 for all 3 seasons.

Pretty dreadful then.

Sofascore score way higher - the players all start the match at 6.5 vs 6 on Whoscored.

Perhaps another way to look at it is what other players were scored at via the same algorithm.

Chilwell on Whoscored in his good seasons in 20/21 and 21/22 was 7.00 and 7.42.

Marcos Alonso in his six Chelsea seasons was 7.39, 7.13, 7.18, 7.30, 6.90 and 7.09.

So that's the benchmark for me, and to be honest the data on Cucurella backs up the eye test as well. He is not a good defender.

29 minutes ago, Sexyfootball said:

In that case he can leave with Cucurella LOL

But not before Sancho, who's contributed less than Cucu, and at the same time as Nkunku and Neto, on the same numbers (and soon to overtake Enzo too) 😜

14 hours ago, Remodez said:

As annoying as it is seeing him in the box playing as a striker, I must say he is an extremely talented footballer and also has the work rate to match so I can understand why Enzo gives him the freedom he does.

I think he works his arse off but i wouldn't say he's extremely talented, if anything he's rather limited and is making the most of what he's got,

So, unless we are playing Southampton , we have to rely on him, or James, or Enzo pinging on in while our useless forwards piss away any chance they get.

Our best box crasher and best finisher outside the box.

This whole thing is f**ked. We really are trying to emulate City (Gvardiol).

Baby Pep only knows one way.

10 hours ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Our best box crasher and best finisher outside the box.

This whole thing is f**ked. We really are trying to emulate City (Gvardiol).

Was going to post something very similar.

(Could end up with better numbers than our wingers by the end of the season).

Give me that carefree attack from the Wolves game away... I havent felt like that after a game since last winning the big one. I can take shambolic defending if we can score five or more.

Absolutely wild that Cucu is rated so highly based off his attacking ability.

He’s an absolute clueless liability defensively, in fact of the back 4 (5?) he’s far and away the worst. His decision making, tackling and over defensive game isn’t even Championship level.

Chilwell was light years ahead both going forward and defending but he got bomb squaded for some unknown reason (Anglophobia is the only logical answer looking at who else was in that bomb squad, if it wasn’t enough for the Yanks to drown all our lovely tea they now want to sell all our lovely players)

Take away the ridiculous barnet and constant movement (usually out of position) and watch the actual player. Of the starting XI only Sanchez is legitimately worse at what they’re supposed to do.

This your Mrs @just ?

2 hours ago, Mod said:

This your Mrs @just ?

10 hours ago, The Boehly Babes said:

Absolutely wild that Cucu is rated so highly based off his attacking ability.

He’s an absolute clueless liability defensively, in fact of the back 4 (5?) he’s far and away the worst. His decision making, tackling and over defensive game isn’t even Championship level.

Chilwell was light years ahead both going forward and defending but he got bomb squaded for some unknown reason (Anglophobia is the only logical answer looking at who else was in that bomb squad, if it wasn’t enough for the Yanks to drown all our lovely tea they now want to sell all our lovely players)

Take away the ridiculous barnet and constant movement (usually out of position) and watch the actual player. Of the starting XI only Sanchez is legitimately worse at what they’re supposed to do.

I agree with a lot of this.

He's been getting praise all season as one of our best players, and I do agree to some extent, but there are massive flaws in how we use him.

When he's asked to defend, he can't do it so he guesses. Sometimes he will get it right, most of the time he won't. He's basically David Luiz in that area.

His inverted full back role has been extended to a free roaming fullback role under Maresca, and it's severily damaged our game in my opinion. He's getting in the way of every attacking player, especially Palmer, who is needing to drop off and go deep because Cucurella has taken up his space. How often do we see Palmer get into the box these days? it's not often. He can't do it anymore because he has Cucurella ghosting into his position and occupying the space. I don't want Cucurella in our most attacking positions, I want our attackers there.

When an attack breaks down, we are like a man down because we have no cover. It's all well and good saying one of the midfielders need to drop off, but they're not defenders, they don't have those natual instincts to do it. We're already asking a lot of Caicedo as it is, asking him to fill in for Cucurella is over kill.

Cucurella's role is needlessly complicating things and it's so typical of coaches like Maresca to do things like this. They try and make football a more complicated game than it needs to be. Cucurella's original inverted full back role where he was moving into midfield to be the extra man to build from the back was enough, we don't need him to go any further than that. Cucurella can score 10 goals a season and I would still have this same opinion on his role that I do now. Those 10 goals are worthless if it's just stunting every other aspect of our attack.

1 hour ago, Scott Harris said:

I agree with a lot of this.

He's been getting praise all season as one of our best players, and I do agree to some extent, but there are massive flaws in how we use him.

When he's asked to defend, he can't do it so he guesses. Sometimes he will get it right, most of the time he won't. He's basically David Luiz in that area.

His inverted full back role has been extended to a free roaming fullback role under Maresca, and it's severily damaged our game in my opinion. He's getting in the way of every attacking player, especially Palmer, who is needing to drop off and go deep because Cucurella has taken up his space. How often do we see Palmer get into the box these days? it's not often. He can't do it anymore because he has Cucurella ghosting into his position and occupying the space. I don't want Cucurella in our most attacking positions, I want our attackers there.

When an attack breaks down, we are like a man down because we have no cover. It's all well and good saying one of the midfielders need to drop off, but they're not defenders, they don't have those natual instincts to do it. We're already asking a lot of Caicedo as it is, asking him to fill in for Cucurella is over kill.

Cucurella's role is needlessly complicating things and it's so typical of coaches like Maresca to do things like this. They try and make football a more complicated game than it needs to be. Cucurella's original inverted full back role where he was moving into midfield to be the extra man to build from the back was enough, we don't need him to go any further than that. Cucurella can score 10 goals a season and I would still have this same opinion on his role that I do now. Those 10 goals are worthless if it's just stunting every other aspect of our attack.

You’ve said exactly what I was thinking but a lot more eloquently. Great post.

Horrific against Netherlands.

6 hours ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Horrific against Netherlands.

Need to sell him quick !

One we should certainly upgrade if we can.

£175k a week and about £30m book value left.

Cucurella is far from the greatest left back but he isn't remotely near the top of our issues just now. There are a stack of players I'd be looking to replace in the first 11 before I looked to spend £30m on a 16 year old left back who will join is in 2032.

Can we all stop glazing this clown now. He’s absolutely horrendous defensively and positional and going forward he is no better than any of the wingers and in fact makes them worse by getting in the way.

Say that it’s down to the system but he is f**king terrible.

Scores a few goals, but defensively is just awful. If we just want a wingback in that position, could have just stick with Chiwell, who got a better shot and probably a better defender

From someone who also has an autistic toddler, this resonates a lot.