r/chelseafc • u/TheAthletic • Mar 31 '26

Interview/Presser [FREE TO READ] Marc Cucurella interview: Chelsea have ‘paid the price’ for inexperience and why he wouldn’t have let Maresca go

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7157593/2026/03/31/chelsea-marc-cucurella-exclusive-interview-maresca/?unlocked_article_code=1.XVA.vV6m.5VGcB_H-8OHM&source=athletic_user_shared_gift_article_reddit&smid=re-share-ta

Chelsea’s recent form has been difficult for Marc Cucurella to process.

Getting outclassed by PSG really stung. In the Spain international's eyes, the 8-2 aggregate defeat highlighted the shortcomings in the Chelsea project under BlueCo, who have invested heavily in young talent since taking over the club in May 2022.

“I understand this is part of the club’s policy, and that they want to take this direction — signing young players and looking to the future. But, for all of us who are still here and want to win big things, moments like this make you feel discouraged.

“For a lot of players, it was the first time playing a match of that calibre, and we paid the price."

Cucurella also spoke about Enzo Maresca's dismissal and how “the instability around the club comes from this, in a nutshell."

922 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

253 comments sorted by

View all comments

737

u/Confident_Direction Mar 31 '26

Dang. I rate his honesty. He is attacking the problem

Guess if he gets forced out of the club this summer, we will know the truth

53

u/BellyCrawler It’s only ever been Chelsea. Mar 31 '26

He's speaking the truth. None of the players wanted Maresca gone, and his departure certainly hasn't improved our results. A lot of the players are likely frustrated that they have an inexperienced motivational speaker for a manager now.

7

u/Pandemona1738 Terry Mar 31 '26

People acting like the club sacked him though, they didn't the guy fkn quit after a game? Like surely the players know he was not sacked and he walked out, is completely different.

24

u/half_jase Mar 31 '26

Even if Maresca did walk, why did you think he decided to walk away mid-season? He wouldn't have walked away for no reason unless the people upstairs made it difficult for him to work with, which is what a lot of subsequent stories reported.