Chelsea make transfer 'decision' on Marc Cucurella sale amid exit talks

Chelsea reportedly have no intention of selling Marc Cucurella in the summer transfer window amid interest from Saudi Arabia.

The defender initially struggled when he first joined from Bright & Hove Albion in 2022, but he has now become a crucial part of Enzo Maresca's squad at Stamford Bridge.

Cucurella made 54 appearances for Chelsea across the 2024-25 season, while also playing a big role for Spain in their Euro 2024 triumph and Chelsea's success at the recent Club World Cup.

Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr are reportedly showing a keen interest in the Spain international, with Cristiano Ronaldo thought to have told the club to pursue a move for the defender.

The report claims that Al-Nassr are preparing a €70m (£60.7m) approach for the Blues defender, who clocked over 5,000 minutes on the pitch for Chelsea and Spain in the 2024-25 season.

Chelsea make transfer decision on Cucurella

According to a report from football.london, the Blues are not looking to sell the left-wing back, who has established himself as a mainstay under the Italian.

Al-Nassr have reportedly reached an agreement to sign Chelsea winger Joao Felix, who will join on a two-year deal and has already participated in his first training session.

Having said that, it appears that the Blues are already planning for the long-term future in their defensive areas.

According to Fabrizio Romano, they have reached a total agreement with Ajax defender Jorrel Hato, and the deal is nearing completion.

Chelsea need to offload more players

The Blues have already sold goalkeepers Djordje Petrovic and Kepa Arrizabalaga and winger Noni Madueke to balance the books this summer, after spending £212m on signings like striker Liam Delap, winger Jamie Gittens and forward Joao Pedro.

Furthermore, the club are looking to offload forward Raheem Sterling, left-back Ben Chilwell, midfielder Renato Veiga and striker Armando Broja to free up the space and reduce the wage bill.

At the same time, the London giants are under pressure from UEFA to produce a positive transfer balance after being initially fined £27m; they need to comply with the rules or risk being unable to register new signings for the Champions League this season.

It means Chelsea may have to sell some of their first-team players who played in the Conference League last season, but it appears that Cucurella is certainly not the player that they want to part with.