Chelsea managed to keep Barcelona from scoring for the first time in 24 consecutive Champions League matches, and according to international media that was largely thanks to Marc Cucurella. The Londoners made short work of the Catalans on Tuesday evening.
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Chelsea’s emphatic 3-0 victory over Barcelona in the Champions League was more than just a statement win.
It felt like a changing of perception, especially around one player in particular: Marc Cucurella. On a night when many expected Barça’s attacking talent to dictate the tempo, it was the Spanish left-back who seized control of the occasion and turned it into his personal showcase.
The Spanish outlet Marca says that the left-back is underestimated by many. Some call Marc Cucurella a good defender. There are even people who doubt whether the Catalan defender should occupy the left flank of the national team. Yet on the night when he had to face the toughest challenge of his Chelsea career, Cucurella emerged as the clear winner. In a match that ended 3-0 in favour of Chelsea, he did not just play his part, he set the tone.
He won the MVP award and delivered a memorable performance that completely tore Barça apart from his side of the pitch. Time and again he pressed high, anticipated passes into Lamine Yamal and stepped in with conviction. When Barcelona tried to switch play and isolate their teenage star in one-v-one situations, they found a full-back who read every movement and refused to panic. Few players combine such consistency, defensive reliability and attacking contribution over ninety-plus minutes. A complete player like few others, hugely underestimated by many, and perhaps, as some Spanish commentators suggested, one of the most underrated footballers in the world right now.
Former top footballer Wayne Rooney was full of praise for the 27-year-old Cucurella in his analysis on Amazon Prime. He highlighted the intensity and bravery of Chelsea’s number three, pointing out how often he stepped out of the defensive line to break Barcelona’s rhythm. Rooney said it was probably the best performance he had seen from a left-back in a long time. What Cucurella showed in this 3-0 win, both with and without the ball, proved in Rooney’s eyes that he is a serious player who belongs at the very highest level of European football.
The performance of the former Barça youth player also earned him an 8.5 from The Daily Mail, one of the highest ratings of the night. The commentary noted that he was responsible for Chelsea’s opening goal, timing his run perfectly and arriving in the box at just the right moment to help break the deadlock, and then later winning the second yellow card for Ronald Araújo when he was brought down after another driving run into space. All of that came while he had Barça’s eighteen-year-old sensation Yamal in his pocket, neutralising the main outlet of Barcelona’s attack. It was, in every sense, a complete left-back display. What an evening.
Tactically, Cucurella’s role was central to the way Chelsea suffocated Barcelona. Whenever Yamal received the ball wide, Cucurella closed the distance immediately, rarely allowing him the time to turn and run. When the teenager tried to drift inside between the lines, Moisés Caicedo and Trevor Chalobah stepped in to help, creating small numerical advantages around the ball. That coordination allowed Chelsea to defend aggressively without leaving huge gaps in behind. Instead of sitting deep and absorbing pressure, they pushed Barça back, recovering possession higher up and turning defensive actions into attacking situations.
Going forward, Cucurella offered constant energy on the overlap. He chose his moments well, never forcing runs for the sake of it but always being available when Chelsea were able to switch play quickly. His combinations with the left-sided midfielder created overloads that Barcelona struggled to handle. On several occasions he received the ball on the underlap, cutting inside to link with Chelsea’s forwards or to take a shot himself. The opening goal came from exactly that kind of intelligent movement, with Barça’s back line dragged out of position and Cucurella arriving with purpose.
Robert Sánchez, Chelsea’s Spanish goalkeeper, was beaming in the mixed zone after the win over Barcelona. He summed up the mood in one simple phrase: Cucurella had Yamal in the pocket. For Sánchez, who knows both Spanish and English football inside out, the game was another reminder that reputations can change quickly when players are truly tested in the Premier League and in big Champions League nights. Everyone is great until they play in the Premier League, he said with a smile, before adding that while many saw Barça as favourites before kick-off, Chelsea looked and felt like the real favourites on the pitch.
Beyond the individual praise, the result itself carries real weight. A 3-0 win against Barcelona, keeping a clean sheet and ending their long streak of scoring in 24 consecutive Champions League games, sends a clear message to the rest of Europe. Chelsea did not win with a single moment of luck or a late counterattack. They controlled key phases of the match, were sharper in the duels, and showed a level of physicality and tactical discipline that Barcelona never managed to match. In both boxes, Chelsea were ruthless. In midfield, they were relentless.
Cucurella himself remained modest when he spoke after the final whistle. The fact that he knows Yamal well from their shared background in Spanish football did not necessarily help him, he explained. Another time it can be different. Football changes quickly. On this occasion he focused on the basics: he tried not to give the youngster too much space, stayed tight whenever Yamal received the ball, and trusted the structure around him. He pointed out how important the support from teammates such as Moisés Caicedo and Trevor Chalobah had been, highlighting the collective effort rather than turning the night into a one-man story.
That humility fits with the wider narrative around Cucurella. Since arriving in England he has faced criticism, doubts about his price tag and questions about his best position. Some saw him as a left-back, others as a left-sided centre-back in a back three, and at times it seemed like he was being judged more for the transfer fee than for his actual performances. This 3-0 victory over Barcelona, with Cucurella at the heart of almost everything good that Chelsea did on his flank, felt like a response to all of that noise.
For Chelsea, the hope will be that this is not just a one-off European night, but the standard they can build on. A solid defensive structure, a brave high line, full-backs that defend and attack with equal conviction, and key players stepping up in big moments. For Cucurella, it might finally be the game that changes how he is spoken about, both in England and back home in Spain. From an underestimated squad player to one of the standout performers in a 3-0 demolition of Barcelona, he has given a powerful answer on the pitch.
And if there were still doubts about whether he can handle the very best young wingers in world football, this match against Barça and Yamal has pushed those doubts a long way into the background. On a night that ended Chelsea FC 3, FC Barcelona 0, it was Marc Cucurella who walked off as the face of a statement win.
