Manchester United was eager to buy a left-back before the summer transfer window closed because of injuries to Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia. In the end, the Red Devils decided to sign Spurs fullback Sergio Reguilon on a season-long loan. But before that, United was planning to sign Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella, who was out of favour. A deal between Chelsea and Manchester United appeared to be closer, as The Top Flight had reported at the time, but eventually nothing materialized. The failure of the agreement was caused by conversations between the clubs that took place behind the scenes, according to transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano.
Fabrizio Romano claims on his YouTube channel that Chelsea and United were close to agreeing to a £3 million loan agreement for Marc Cucurella. According to Romano, the major issue that led to the deal’s collapse was the fact that Cucurella and Chelsea both objected to the transfer’s inclusion of a “break-clause.” In simple terms, Manchester United would have had the power to terminate the loan in January once Shaw and Malacia made their respective injury recoveries. The transaction failed as a result of United’s eagerness to use Cucurella as a stop-gap measure.
Manchester United got upset when Chelsea tied Cucurella in the EFL Cup match against AFC Wimbledon because they wanted to use the player in the cup game. The eventual transfer consequences were caused by both of these factors.
Furthermore, Cucurella rejected loan bids from RB Leipzig, Sevilla, Atletico Madrid, and Real Sociedad during the transfer window, according to Fabrizio Romano. Romano, interestingly, also confirmed a somewhat alarming rumour. During the 2023 winter transfer window, Manchester City allegedly made Chelsea a loan offer for Cucurella with an option to purchase.
The most recent information regarding Marc Cucurella’s future at Chelsea is that Fulham contacted the Blues on the day before the transfer deadline after the player’s deal with Manchester United broke down. Despite all the interest, the Spaniard is currently expected to remain at Chelsea, which has delayed the signing of a new deal by fullback Ian Maatsen. Such developments may be exciting and difficult for players and clubs in the always changing world of football transactions. While Cucurella’s decision to remain at Chelsea gives the team a sense of continuity.
