Graham Potter concerned Marc Cucurella has become Chelsea scapegoat
By Tom Gott
Chelsea manager Graham Potter has continued his defence of under-fire defender Marc Cucurella, insisting the Spaniard has become a scapegoat for the team's recent struggles.
Cucurella joined from Brighton during the summer in an expensive deal worth an initial £56m but has failed to make his mark at Stamford Bridge, with many fans quickly losing patience with the 24-year-old.
The left-back has been booed by supporters and even teammate Mykhailo Mudryk and co-owner Todd Boehly have been seen liking Twitter posts questioning Cucurella's suitability for a team like Chelsea.
Potter, however, has remained loyal to Cucurella. The manager admitted off-field issues, later revealed to be a burglary at his home shortly after his move to Chelsea, have not helped and urged fans to stick by the defender.
“The results that we are having, where we are in the table, unfortunately somebody will be getting the brunt of the criticism," Potter said. "That’s the pattern. And whether it’s fair or not, it doesn’t matter.
“As professionals we have to accept that and work as hard as we can to change opinion. That’s what it is, that’s the challenge for us. I’m not going to argue against it. Marc is a big boy, he is an adult, has kids, he knows the situation. We have to help him change perspective on this.
“There is always frustration and we have to accept the frustration with me, frustration at players, it’s part of what we have to accept in this position.
“There is no magic formula. It’s not easy to play with that type of pressure. All he can do is keep doing well in training, keep working hard, wait for the right opportunity.
“We are not losing because of one individual, one person. We are a team and we need to stick together.”
Potter continued his defence of Cucurella, insisting the defender has the mentality needed to climb out of his current slump.
"The club invested a lot of money in him in the summer," the boss added. "I was with him at Brighton last year and know his qualities. He was the final piece in our puzzle and helped the team function really well.
“At Chelsea, with the amount of transition there is, it is a completely different situation. He won’t be the first player that in the first six months at a new club, it doesn’t quite feel like it should. That can affect your performance.
“But he brings different qualities in the build-up, his reactions when the ball gets lost are really, really good.
“In the summer Chelsea weren’t the only team that wanted to buy him and the other team (Manchester City) that wanted to buy him are quite good!
“Yes he has [the mentality to recover]. The team that was interested in him, they wouldn’t be if he didn’t have the character he has.”