Chelsea finally managed to get a win on the board having lost their last three games, beating Southampton 4-0 at Stamford Bridge and taking all three points with goals from Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto, Levi Colwill and Marc Cucurella.
Enzo Maresca’s men held 60% possession, taking 19 shots in the game, creating seven “big chances” and generating 2.32 xG compared to Southampton’s 0.62 xG.
With the Blues scoring four goals and keeping their first clean sheet since their 0-0 draw with Everton back in December, there were plenty of top-level performances, with a few individuals in particular standing out slightly more than others.
Chelsea’s standout performers against Southampton
Enzo Fernández has made 31 appearances for Maresca’s side so far this season, scoring four goals, providing eight assists and totalling 2,295 minutes played.
Chelsea’s vice-captain (taking the armband in Reece James’ absence) was brilliant yet again, making things tick in midfield, dropping deep to progress play through the lines, making seven key passes, completing four out of five long balls, creating three big chances and winning five out of five ground duels.
But another superb performer against Southampton was Cucurella, who, along with his goal, made a whopping six tackles in the game, winning eight of his nine ground duels, showing his commitment to getting stuck in and doing the dirty work.
But it’s the mixture of his hard work and off-ball intensity blended with his calm ability to invert into midfield, pick up little pockets of space and keep things ticking, allowing others to play with more freedom.
It could well be argued that he’d now walk into the leading teams in the divisions…
How Cucurella compares to the PL’s best
Since joining the Blues in 2022 for a fee of around £60m, the Spaniard has had a roller coaster of a time at Chelsea, going from out of favour and out of form, to one of their top performers, a fan favourite and potentially the best left-back in the league – as ex-Blues man William Gallas has tipped him to become.
Cucurella has made 89 appearances in his time at Chelsea, scoring five goals, providing seven assists and totalling 6,897 minutes played.
|
Cucurella vs Lewis-Skelly & Robertson comparison |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Stats (per 90 mins) |
Cucurella |
Lewis-Skelly |
Robertson |
|
Goals + Assists |
0.20 |
0.08 |
0.03 |
|
Progressive Carries |
1.09 |
1.69 |
2.26 |
|
Progressive Passes |
3.65 |
4.94 |
6.46 |
|
Shots Total |
0.63 |
0.16 |
0.56 |
|
Key Passes |
0.61 |
0.36 |
1.71 |
|
Tackles |
2.00 |
2.53 |
1.52 |
|
Blocks |
1.52 |
0.12 |
0.39 |
|
Interceptions |
0.73 |
0.48 |
0.77 |
|
Ball Recoveries |
4.26 |
3.86 |
4.01 |
|
Aerial Duels Won |
0.87 |
0.36 |
0.16 |
|
Stats taken from FBref |
|||
When comparing Cucurella’s metrics this season to Myles Lewis-Skelly at Arsenal and Andrew Robertson at Liverpool, you can see just how good the Spaniard is, not only making the most ball recoveries and blocks, but also offering output now, getting forward and showing his technical quality too, as well as his aggression and tenacity off the ball.
Cucurella was described as “phenomenal” by one notable analyst on X (formerly Twitter), praising his 1v1 defensive capabilities and his technical quality. His ability to invert into midfield, provide underlapping and overlapping runs in the final third, and even chip in with goals now, makes him one of the very best in his position.
With Robertson coming to the back end of his Liverpool career and Lewis-Skelly being tipped to move into midfield in the near future, you can put your money on the fact both Arsenal and Liverpool would snap at the chance to have Cucurella in their sides if given the chance.
Related
100% duels won: 9/10 Chelsea ace is rapidly becoming more vital than Palmer
Chelsea ended their dismal recent run with a 4-0 win over Southampton last night.
