Mauricio Pochettino insists Marc Cucurella remains part of his plans despite the left-back’s lingering disappointment over the collapse of a deadline day move to Manchester United.
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Thomas Tuchel was still in the Stamford Bridge hotseat when Chelsea decided to pay Brighton £63million for the Spaniard but the 25-year-old has struggled to find his best form under a succession of managers.
With Ben Chilwell already established as a key part of Pochettino’s rebuild, Cucurella’s hopes of resurrecting his Chelsea career were further hindered by the Argentine’s decision to deploy Levi Colwill as a makeshift left-back.
Cucurella appeared on the verge of a loan move to United earlier this month with Erik ten Hag shorn of the services of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia but eventually settled on the temporary signing of Sergio Reguilon from Spurs.
A failure to complete a move to Old Trafford has reportedly left Cucurella disappointed and with his only appearances so far this season coming in the Carabao Cup, he could be forgiven for thinking he is being frozen out.
Asked about the defender’s chances of forcing his way back into his Premier League starting XI ahead of Monday’s west London derby at Fulham, Pochettino said: “I wasn’t involved but he’s our player and I’ve been clear: he has chances, he can play.
‘Marc is going to work hard. It’s really clear. he’s in our plan and if he deserves to play, he will play.’
Cucurella is far from the only Chelsea star struggling to find form, but Pochettino insists he retains faith in a clutch of youngsters who have been bought as much for their potential as their current ability.
‘It’s not only Mischa (Mykhailo Mudryk), it’s many players that arrive,’ he said. The level of these guys, because they are so young, changes.
‘Big change from where they come and also it’s not about arriving and performing when you are young, it’s about adapting, helping them to settle.
‘And then the most difficult thing is to understand what they need to settle and to feel comfortable and to express their talent.’
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