Data Analysis: Marc Cucurella.
What he will bring to Chelsea FC.
Looking at his percentile chart, Marc Cucurella is a fantastic palyer who is very well rounded in both his Passing and Defending side of his game. He also has the ability to drive forward and carry the ball up the pitch to link up with the attack.
Marc Cucurella is best at progressing the ball forward into the final third and penalty box. Has better crossing accuracy% and pass completion%. Defensively, he is able to win his tackles and has the ability to successfully press the opponent to win the ball back.
Marc Cucurella is defensively versatile. He earned an average rating of 7.22 when playing as a LCB. He allows dynamic tactical setups for Tuchel to use for different games and have Chilwell and Cucurella both on the pitch. Stats filtered when he played LCB.
Marc Cucurella was one of the best crossers in the Premier League last season coming in second for most successful crosses and had the 5th best cross accuracy overall. He also has the ability to whip early crosses into the box from deeper positions as a LWB or LCB.
Marc Cucurella is very good at progressive the ball forward. If deployed at LCB he will be able to replicate Rudiger’s ability to drive forward with the ball. He was 9th for successful final third passes(531) which highlights his effectiveness at picking the right pass in attack.
Marc Cucurella ranks in the upper right quadrant for xT. Both his passes and ball carries when progressing the ball are dangerous and good quality to help us score.
Marc Cucurella is defensively sound ranking 9th in duels won%. He made more tackles (93) than any Brighton player, 2nd for fullbacks in the league. He also came second to Mitchell (156) in winning possession in the defensive third with 124.
The defensive side to his game helped Potter’s Brighton side finish 9th. Brighton had the 6th best defensive record (44 conceded) last season conceding 12.5 shots per game which were also the 6th fewest in the league. He has the defensive capabilities to play that LCB role.
Marc Cucurella made the most ball recoveries than any other Fullback in PL last season. Furthermore, no defender won possession in the middle third of the pitch more times last season than Cucurella. His ability to press and win the ball back quickly will be a great asset.
Marc Cucurella is not bad in the air despite his height winning 61.8% of his aerial duels in the defensive third. He ranked 5th in Aerial Duels won% for Fullbacks in the league.
This is what we can expect in terms of ball progression and crossing from our wingbacks. Just two defenders created 40+ chances AND completed 25+ take-ons in the Premier League last season — Reece James and Marc Cucurella.
Final Thoughts…
Personally, for me, I see Cucurella playing at LWB mainly. I would expect him to play there and when Chilwell is fully back to his best, he can drop into LCB with Chilwell at LWB in certain games.
Chilwell is better at operating higher up closer to the byline and being in the box to score. Cucurella is the far better creator, his ability to play balls from deep and being defensively versatile allows for both Chilwell and Cucurella to coexist in the same line-up.
Cucurella can start from the LCB position and join the midfield and help build up the play in a 2–3 base progressing the ball from deeper positions.
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