Marc Cucurella in action for Chelsea against Liverpool (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

'Terrible' – Pundit U-turns on expensive Chelsea signing

Originally posted on Caught Offside | By Mark Brus | Last updated Oct 8, 2025 6:32 AM ET

Former Tottenham midfielder Jamie O’Hara has admitted he’s now majorly U-turned on Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella after his improvement in form.

The Spain international started slowly when he first joined the Blues from Brighton, and O’Hara was initially far from impressed with him.

Still, the pundit now admits Cucurella has completely turned it around, going from a “terrible” signing to looking like one of the best players in the world in his position.

See below as O’Hara discussed Cucurella on talkSPORT, saying: “I remember when Cucurella went in at Chelsea.

“He was terrible, and everyone was like, ‘Oh my god, it’s the worst £60m we’ve ever spent.’ Cucurella – now you probably put him in one of the top five defenders, left backs, in the world.

“He’s brilliant, so you’ve got to give players time.

Cucurella has done well to turn things around for himself at Chelsea, and one imagines there’ll be a few people out there who have changed their minds about the player.

Can Marc Cucurella keep his Chelsea starting spot?

Still, CFC signed Jorrel Hato as another option at left-back this summer, and he’s widely regarded as one of the most outstanding young talents in world football.

It might not happen for Hato straight away, just as it didn’t for Cucurella, but in the long run one imagines he’ll be a serious contender for a starting spot at Stamford Bridge.

Marc Cucurella in action for Chelsea against Liverpool (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

It will then be interesting to see if Cucurella can keep his place, but for now he’s done a great job to cement that left-back spot as his own.

Chelsea now surely need to keep a more settled squad rather than chopping and changing so much, with players like Cucurella benefiting from being given the kind of time that others like Nicolas Jackson arguably weren’t.

This article first appeared on Caught Offside and was syndicated with permission.

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