Mourinho Targets Cucurella for Real Madrid's Left-Back Position
Jose Mourinho has not taken charge of a single Real Madrid training session yet, but the work has already started. Quietly, from a distance, he is picking at the edges of a squad that has won everything and still, in his eyes, looks incomplete.
One position keeps coming back onto his notepad: left-back. One name keeps circling: Marc Cucurella.
Mourinho’s early target
According to journalist Ruben Canizares, Mourinho is closely tracking the Chelsea full-back as he sketches out what his Madrid should look like. The Portuguese coach has seen enough of Cucurella in England and Spain to know exactly what he would be buying: aggression, intensity, and a defender who relishes the duel.
The timing is no coincidence. Cucurella’s future at Chelsea is drifting into uncertainty as the summer window approaches. Those around the Spanish defender believe the moment is right for a new challenge, and they are working with a clear number in mind. A transfer fee in the region of €45–50 million is viewed as realistic. Anything significantly above that, they consider a step into fantasy.
For Mourinho, that price bracket is not insignificant. But it is not outrageous either, not for a player entering his prime and proven at the highest level.
Barcelona in the background
Cucurella’s name has not only echoed around Valdebebas. It has also reappeared in the corridors of power at Barcelona.
The Catalan club, where Cucurella once came through the youth ranks, are again following his situation. Their interest is genuine, but their reality is familiar: any serious move depends on outgoings and whether they can create enough financial space to operate. As with so many of their recent windows, ambition meets arithmetic.
That leaves Madrid in a stronger position structurally, if not yet decisively in the race. For now, they are monitoring, not acting.
A crowded left side that still doesn’t convince
On paper, Real Madrid do not need a left-back. They already have three options in the squad. On the pitch, Mourinho sees something different.
Alvaro Carreras arrived last summer with expectation and promise, but the incoming manager is not fully convinced. The Spaniard remains part of the group, yet Mourinho senses vulnerability in that area, a place where experience and reliability could be upgraded.
That is where Cucurella fits the profile. Premier League battles, Champions League nights, the tactical schooling of multiple systems – he brings a level of certainty that managers crave when the margins tighten in April and May.
Still, the move is not simple. To bring him in, someone must make way. Madrid will have to clear space in a department that already looks well stocked on the squad list, even if it feels less secure in the manager’s mind.
The €50m question
Cucurella’s camp are clear: a deal should be there to be done at around €45–50 million. The question now sits with Madrid, and with Mourinho’s influence growing by the day.
Is reinforcing the left side of the defence worth that outlay when other areas may also demand investment? Does a new left-back trump the need for depth elsewhere in a squad that will be expected to compete on every front again?
The coach has made his preference known. He wants more competition at left-back. He wants Cucurella.
Now Madrid must decide how much they are willing to pay to give Mourinho the defensive balance he is already trying to redraw before he has even walked onto the training pitch.
