Chelsea are exploring a move to beat Manchester City to Marc Cucurella as they ask Brighton about the £50m-rated defender, whose proposed transfer to the Premier League champions has stalled over the asking price
Chelsea are exploring a deal for Brighton left-back Marc Cucurella with Manchester City’s move in the balance.
Brighton’s £50million asking price has seen talks with City stall and sources say Chelsea have now asked about the Spaniard.
The Blues are in the market for a left-sided defender with Marcos Alonso in line for a move to Barcelona.
Cucurella has handed in a transfer request and missed Saturday’s friendly with Espanyol.
City had offered around £35m for the 26-year-old and there is said to be some annoyance on Brighton’s part at the nature of the negotiations to date.
That has opened the door for rival offers and Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea are interested in a player who caught the eye during his debut season in the Premier League last term.
However, it is thought former Barcelona player Cucurella has been extremely keen to play under Pep Guardiola at City, who will have to return with an improved offer if a deal is to be agreed.
Man City are stretched thin at full-back ahead of the new campaign, with Kyle Walker and Joao Cancelo the only senior players at Guardiola’s disposal in the position.
Both Walker and Cancelo featured during City’s 3-1 defeat to Liverpool in the Community Shield on Saturday and are most likely to start the season, with only Josh Wilson-Esbrand and Rico Lewis offering cover at full-back.
Oleksandr Zinchenko, who featured 28 times in all competitions for Guardiola last campaign, left the Etihad to join Mikel Arteta at Arsenal in July.
Meanwhile, Chelsea have struggled to finalise moves for key targets Jules Kounde and Raphinha this summer, as the pair chose to take up arms with Barcelona after late swoops from the Catalan club.
It seems new Blues owner Todd Boehly is keen to learn from his experience of the volatile transfer market and take a leaf out of Barcelona’s book, hijacking Man City’s pursuit of the Brighton left-back.
Cucurella played 38 appearances in all competitions last season, scoring once and assisting twice as Brighton finished ninth in the Premier League table.
