[Albion] Marc Cucurella *Signed For Chelsea 05/08/2022*

[Simster]

Lots of understandable vitriol on here towards Chelsea, but the truth is, they are a top striker away being a top 4 team.

Not a popular opinion, but if they sell some of their duds and buy a reliable striker they'll be in contention again next season.

Not for me. They've not got a squad that is prepared to stand up and be counted when the shit hits the fan. It doesn't need to be an individual (like Man Utd had with Roy Keane), but you do need a team that is prepared to fight. They just have a string of slightly above average players who they overpaid for and feel they've already made it by simply signing for Chelsea.

The very best teams can go in 2 down at half time (because even they have off days) and you know the game isn't anywhere near over. When Chelsea do that, you can expect them to lose by at least 3.

 

[Mancgull]

Klopp definitely taking the piss…

“My god were we lucky!” - Klopp’s cheeky dig at Caicedo and Lavia

The manager was on top form at Anfield!

www.thisisanfield.com

Wow, Klopp did actually say that. Moises must be hurting now!
Good insight by the Liverpool fans saying that Caicedo would have thrived under Klopp if he’d have had the desire to join, rather than be influenced by his agent due to the agent’s larger fee.

 

[Nobby Cybergoat]

I can’t see Chelsea selling Cucu yet….they’d surely only get £15m - £20m, which would result in a huge FFP hit. Most likely is a loan deal with someone paying most of his wages. I could see that as something we might be interested in, but would entirely depend on how Cucu left the club. Presumably he didn’t do a Trossard or Sanchez - and he was our player of the season before he left. Everyone seemed to like him then.

I agree with this.

And I think loaning players out will be Chelsea's strategy with all their flops. But the issue is finding someone who will pay 80%+ of the wages they pay. I bet Chelsea doubled what he was on here when he signed for them. This takes us out of the equation. More likely it will be someone like Newcastle.

Personally I don't really want the fella back, but yeh i'd swallow it and get behind him if it came to pass. I absolutely hope and think we'll be looking at Barco first and I don't doubt we also have less high profile targets. We need someone in this position.

 

[Commander]

I can't think of a better signing as a backup for Pervis. But I can't imagine he'd be happy to do that.

Fans definitely over-estimate the issues around someone like him coming back. I would have thought Bloom / Barber and most of the squad were very happy with the way he left and how it worked out financially, it's only the fans it would be an issue with. And we all know how fickle football fans are.

 

[jcdenton08]

Lots of understandable vitriol on here towards Chelsea, but the truth is, they are a top striker away being a top 4 team.

Not a popular opinion, but if they sell some of their duds and buy a reliable striker they'll be in contention again next season.

I’m personally not sure. They have this idea at Chelsea that they’ve been a “top striker” away from success for about two decades now, the reality is that they ruin very good strikers. Off the top of my head, Lukaku, Shevchenko, Morata, Werner, Jackson, Torres, Aubamayang and Batshuayi have all failed to live up to expectations. I’m sure there’s more, but those players alone are over £300m in terms of transfer fees, never mind sky-high wages and agents fees, signing on fees etc likely taking them to around £500m. In the meantime they’ve let Tammy Abraham go, who has scored goals for fun at Roma, and have £52m Nkunku injured since signing him.

Aside from all of that, their defensive record is hideous and their best defender is a 37 year old very possibly in his final season of professional football. On top of that, they have two keepers who are nowhere near the calibre of Ederson, Alisson or (and I hate saying this, because he’s ghastly) Martinez.

Additionally, it’s clear that the manager would be delighted to move on Disasi, Cucurella and 4-5 other squad players, another 2 of which are underperforming defenders.

Really, their “team” is;

New GK

Reece James (when fit), CB, CB, Chilwell (when fit)

Fernandez, Caicedo

Sterling - CAM - LW

Nkunku (maybe)


They have spent horribly badly and still only have half of a team.

 

[Hotchilidog]

If the club wanted Cucu back for a decent price I'd be all for it. I trust those making the purchasing decisions. We need Estupinian insurance. I'd be surprised if this was a goer though

 

[Hotchilidog]

The one thing I will say about potentially signing anyone from a Chelsea fire sale, I think whomever we got would instantly play a lot better than they are now. I have never seen such a disunited top flight club that has been so expensively assembled. There is something rotten at the heart of Chelsea that goes way beyond who happens to be lumbered with the manager's job at the time. It's a cesspit.

 

[jcdenton08]

Just one more thought on Chelsea, before I move onto something more interesting like what sandwich I’m going to have for lunch.

They are desperate to sell, but almost every one of their saleable assets is on a lengthy contract thanks to their “genius” strategy, with few clubs likely willing to match terms to take over their contracts.

This leaves them with a lot of very well paid mercenaries and their only way of financing new transfers being selling their homegrown players, which in FFP accounting is pure profit. Players like Gallagher and Broja, either of which I’d happily take at the Albion in a fire sale.

 

[maltaseagull]

Wow, Klopp did actually say that. Moises must be hurting now!
Good insight by the Liverpool fans saying that Caicedo would have thrived under Klopp if he’d have had the desire to join, rather than be influenced by his agent due to the agent’s larger fee.

Agreed. Liverpool was a good fit for him especially with Ali Mac there.
Very sad that he finished up at such a badly run club. But he is very wealthy.

 

[Me and my Monkey]

Did Cucurella actually leave the Albion in a bad manner? I really can't remember. It was during the closed season, he joined what was probably back then quite an exciting sounding project to further his career, and earned albion a nice little payday. Who knew then it would all go so badly tits up? Obviously delighted it did, but more so because it's Chelsea, not really cucu's fault, who was just a little naive. As for Caicedo, just sad that he was so badly manipulated by the greed of others, such a poor choice. I would have been very happy to have seen him at Liverpool playing alongside alimac (although happier to have seen him pledging undying allegiance to the Albion, obvs).

 

[jcdenton08]

Did Cucurella actually leave the Albion in a bad manner? I really can't remember. It was during the closed season, he joined what was probably back then quite an exciting sounding project to further his career, and earned albion a nice little payday. Who knew then it would all go so badly tits up? Obviously delighted it did, but more so because it's Chelsea, not really cucu's fault, who was just a little naive. As for Caicedo, just sad that he was so badly manipulated by the greed of others, such a poor choice. I would have been very happy to have seen him at Liverpool playing alongside alimac (although happier to have seen him pledging undying allegiance to the Albion, obvs).

He absolutely did, yes.

 

[Silverhatch]

Agreed. Liverpool was a good fit for him especially with Ali Mac there.
Very sad that he finished up at such a badly run club. But he is very wealthy.

He was f***ing, unbelievably wealthy at Brighton . Caicedo incredibly badly advised, in footballing terms, to go to Boehly’s shit show.

 

[Greg Bobkin]

Lots of understandable vitriol on here towards Chelsea, but the truth is, they are a top striker away being a top 4 team.

Not a popular opinion, but if they sell some of their duds and buy a reliable striker they'll be in contention again next season.

But that is an issue in itself and possibly preventing them from BEING a top four team. Look at the amount of money they've spaffed on players. And STILL not got a striker. There were LOADS of people (Chelsea fans and non-Chelsea fans) who were saying that's in the summer and they didn't go and get a 'top striker'. For me, that's a massive issue in itself. They clearly had/have the funds, but they just didn't get a deal done. There's the fella who got injured, but he's an unknown quantity.

 

[Dibdab]

There was a Facebook post yesterday about Moises wanting a move to Liverpool in January and him saying it was the biggest mistake of his life joining Chelsea instead of Liverpool. Also, Jurgen Klopp not being interested.

As bad decisions go that is an absolute monster. He'd be winning the Prem if he'd gone to Anfield imo.

 

[jcdenton08]

He was f***ing, unbelievably wealthy at Brighton . Caicedo incredibly badly advised, in footballing terms, to go to Boehly’s shit show.

It’s almost like his brand new agent was only after making as much money as quickly as possible, and didn’t give a toss about the player’s prospects other than earning potential. Almost.

 

[Commander]

He absolutely did, yes.

As far as the fans are concerned. I imagine the Board were ecstatic with how it panned out.

 

[Zeberdi]

Did Cucurella actually leave the Albion in a bad manner?

No, not IMO.

You are right, the season was over . Cucu wanted a chance to play with a CL side and increase his chances, in his mind, (therefore) of Spanish International football. We have never begrudged that of our players. Cucu’s only ‘crime’ was to do it after he’d been voted POTY by the both the Club and the fans. Sometimes our more entitled fans don’t appreciate that we can’t offer that to players or managers - nor recognise that if we have been particularly brilliant in our recruitment, it will be very hard holding onto a player that absolutely shines beyond expectations in his first season. We should take it as a plus that Big Clubs hold our players and managers in such high esteem.

Both Maupay and Caceido and Sanchez were more disruptive in their method of instigating moves imo.

EDIT: I meant Trossard of course!

 

[timbha]

As far as the fans are concerned. I imagine the Board were ecstatic with how it panned out.

Doesn’t mean to say the Board or management team would want or welcome him back. No Dickeads Policy and all that.

 

[jackanada]

Cucu also played LCB for us, quite well, IFIAK.

As I have mentioned previously while discussing the travails of Cucu he was good for us as LCB because he was operating as a semi autonomous Dunk-bot. Chelsea don't have anyone who can act as his controller.

 

[golddene]

People are fickle. The speed they switched from loving Cucu to booing him, they can flip back on a whim.

We employed Steve Coppell once.

Shirly, wasn’t that just a sympathy employ! Made entirely with his dreadful STD infection in mind and with particular emphasis given, due to his previous tragic involvement and subsequent recovery from Croydon ? If memory serves !