Since BlueCo completed its takeover in 2022, Stamford Bridge has changed off the field while results have lagged. The January exit of Enzo Maresca crystallised growing unrest among supporters and within the squad, with Enzo Fernández publicly expressing disappointment and confusion over the decision.

Marc Cucurella took that frustration further, questioning the timing and the club’s wider direction. “The moment Maresca left, it had a big impact on us,” Cucurella said. “These are decisions taken by the club. If you asked me, I would not have made this decision. To make a change like that, the best thing is to wait until the end of the season. You would give everyone, the players and the new manager, time to get ready, have a full preseason.”

Maresca’s relationship with those above him had been strained since the summer, when he publicly requested a new centre back to replace the injured Levi Colwill and that request was refused. Reports say Maresca grew disenchanted with the sporting directors and decision-makers, accusing them of interfering in his role. The hierarchy opted for a change, and Liam Rosenior was appointed to replace Maresca at a crucial point while the team remained in the race for Champions League qualification.

Cucurella also criticised Chelsea’s transfer philosophy. He highlighted the shift away from senior, experienced signings after the 2022 window in which Todd Boehly played a prominent role in recruitment. That summer saw arrivals including Raheem Sterling, Kalidou Koulibaly, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Wesley Fofana, Carney Chukwuemeka, Cesare Casadei and Cucurella himself.

“I understand this is part of the club’s policy, and that they want to take this direction—signing young players and looking to the future,” he stressed. “But, for all of us who are still here and want to win big things, moments like this make you feel discouraged.

“We have a good core of players. The foundations are there. But to fight for major trophies such as the Premier League or the Champions League, you need more. Signing young players only might complicate achieving those goals. Against PSG , we lacked players that had gone through situations like that.

“You need time as well, and I know the young players are the ones that will have the experience in the future. But you need to find the balance between both worlds.”

The recruitment model overseen by co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, and Joe Shields, has prioritised young talent. There are a few clear positives from the recruitment since 2022, including Cole Palmer and Moisés Caicedo. But several signings have drawn scrutiny and recent results, such as the Champions League loss to PSG following Club World Cup success, have intensified fan protests and anti-Eghbali chants at home games. The board renewed contracts for Winstanley, Stewart, Shields and Sam Jewell in August 2025, even as dissent grew louder.

Liam Rosenior took charge following the departure of Enzo Maresca and delivered an immediate uplift. Six wins from his first seven matches raised expectations, yet the broader picture has been inconsistent.

Chelsea sit fourth in the Premier League table during Rosenior’s tenure with 10 games played, a +5 goal difference and 17 points. The snapshot of the whole division, correct as of March 31, 2026, shows Manchester United top on 23 points and Arsenal second on 21. Chelsea’s standing in that table reflects a team that has produced encouraging results alongside notable setbacks.

March was especially bruising. The club suffered four consecutive defeats, exited the Champions League at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain and slipped into a catch-up position in the race to qualify for next season’s European competition. Rosenior’s side are higher in the form table than in the actual standings: their return can only be bettered by three clubs, and the same applies to their goal difference.

Part of the difficulty lies in schedule congestion. Rosenior arrived while Chelsea were still involved in four competitions, and only 10 of his first 19 matches were Premier League fixtures. That imbalance has complicated efforts to build consistent domestic momentum.

Consistency has been the main problem. A 4–1 victory over Aston Villa to open March was a significant result, but points were later dropped against Leeds United and Burnley. The 2–0 win over Brentford in his third game appeared straightforward in the table but was, in reality, fortunate. “Sometimes the game isn’t fair,” Bees boss Keith Andrews correctly reflected. January’s 3–2 comeback win over West Ham also masked moments of vulnerability when Chelsea trailed by two goals at home.

After winning their first four league games, Rosenior’s Chelsea have managed only one win from their last six. Those 12 early points have been followed by five from the latest six outings. In form across that recent run, Chelsea rank 17th, having picked up more points than only Leeds United and Tottenham Hotspur.

Marc Cucurella confirmed what had been simmering around Stamford Bridge, aligning his comments with earlier speculation about Enzo Fernández and Real Madrid. While team-mate Moisés Caicedo declined to add fuel to talk of exits, the left back allowed that a return to La Liga remains on his mind.

“At the end of the day, Spain is always Spain,” he said. “It’s my country and where I grew up, and you always think about going back, but I think I’d leave it for a few years.

“I’m very happy [in England], my family too, and as a life experience, it’s a very good one.”

Pressed on a possible move to Barcelona, where he came through as a youth player, Cucurella did not rule it out.

“Well, it’s clear that if something like that happens, it’s difficult to turn them down, but I’d have to consider it.

“At the end of the day, it’s not just about me. I’d also have to think about my family, maybe, what’s best for them or for all of us, but as I said before, I’m not thinking about that right now.

“If it happens, it happens, and we’ll see what we decide.”

Later the same day he delivered a frank assessment of the club’s current state, linking unrest in the squad to managerial upheaval. Tensions have been present since the exit of Enzo Maresca in January, a departure the player suggested was disruptive after 18 months of work together. The split followed reported conflict with a sporting hierarchy under pressure since new owners BlueCo arrived in 2022.

Maresca was succeeded by Liam Rosenior, who faces his own challenges after four straight defeats and a Champions League exit to Paris Saint-Germain, who had been beaten by the Blues in the Club World Cup last summer.

“Liam is a very good person and has been great at handling the group, the characters,” Cucurella insisted to The Athletic . “He likes to stay close to us and his football ideas are good, but we don’t have the time to train them.”

Cucurella also defended Maresca and warned that frequent change has consequences: “With Enzo Maresca in charge, we were more stable, because we worked together for 18 months… It is what it is.”

That instability is compounded by a recruitment strategy favouring younger players and resale value over older experience. With Tosin Adarabioyo the oldest at 28, ahead of Robert Sánchez and 27-year-old Cucurella, the left back admitted the club’s “win later” approach has a psychological cost. “Results like [the PSG defeat] are always hard to take,” Cucurella said. “You are fighting and training every day only to realize, at the very end, that when games matter, we are still a bit away from the top level.

“I understand this is part of the club’s policy, and that they want to take this direction—signing young players and looking to the future. But, for all of us who are still here and want to win big things, moments like this make you feel discouraged. ]”