<p><a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/chelsea/"><strong>Chelsea</strong></a> traveled to North London to face <strong>Tottenham Hotspur</strong> in Matchday 15 of the 2024-25 Premier League season, but defender <strong><a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/marc-cucurella/">Marc Cucurella</a></strong>‘s performance came under scrutiny after two costly mistakes led to Spurs’ early goals. <strong>In response, the Spaniard opted to change his boots during the match</strong>.</p>



<p><strong><a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/tottenham-hotspur/">Tottenham</a> took the lead in the 5th minute</strong>, capitalizing on Cucurella’s first error. The left-back failed to control a pass from center-back <strong>Levi Colwill</strong> in midfield. As he tried to recover, <strong>Cucurella slipped</strong>, allowing <strong>Brennan Johnson</strong> to steal the ball and deliver a perfect cross into the box for <strong>Dominik Solanke</strong>, who finished clinically to make it 1-0.</p>



<p>But the mistakes didn’t stop there. Just five minutes later, in the 10th minute, Cucurella was caught out again during a Chelsea buildup from the back. A pass from <strong>Enzo Fernandez</strong> was played back to the Spaniard, but under pressure from Johnson, <strong>Cucurella slipped once more</strong>. Johnson pounced on the loose ball and squared it to <strong>Dejan Kulusevski</strong>, who made a sharp move and finished expertly, doubling Spurs’ lead to 2-0.</p>



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<div class="ck-twitter"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Marc Cucurella goes for a change of footwear after several early slips. 👀<br><br>📺 USA Network | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TOTCHE?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TOTCHE</a> <a href="https://t.co/LME7fpf0Ve">pic.twitter.com/LME7fpf0Ve</a></p>— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBCSportsSoccer/status/1865800690003533905?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 8, 2024</a></blockquote></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p><strong>After the second goal, cameras caught Cucurella sprinting to the sideline, where he quickly changed his boots</strong>. Both of his earlier slips had resulted in Tottenham goals, and with the scoreline in Spurs’ favor, the change seemed like a necessary adjustment to rectify the situation.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figure class="image"><img loading="lazy" width="1200" height="675" src="https://ds-images.bolavip.com/news/image?src=https://images.worldsoccertalk.com/webp/full/WST_20241208_WST_543171_Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea-1200x675_2b4529a3.webp&amp;width=1200&amp;height=675" alt="" class="wp-image-543200" srcset="https://images.futbolsites.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/12/08123713/Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea-1200x675.jpg 1200w, https://images.futbolsites.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/12/08123713/Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea-300x169.jpg 300w, https://images.futbolsites.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/12/08123713/Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea-768x432.jpg 768w, https://images.futbolsites.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/12/08123713/Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://images.futbolsites.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/12/08123713/Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea-740x416.jpg 740w, https://images.futbolsites.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/12/08123713/Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea-490x275.jpg 490w, https://images.futbolsites.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/12/08123713/Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea-250x140.jpg 250w, https://images.futbolsites.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2024/12/08123713/Marc-Cucurella-Chelsea.jpg 1920w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px"></figure></figure>



<p>With 28 points from 14 matches, <strong>Enzo Maresca’s side currently sit in third place in the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/premier-league/">Premier League</a></strong>, just one point behind Arsenal. The match against Spurs represented a crucial opportunity for the Blues to close the gap in the title race, while the home side, currently in 12th place, will be looking to push for a return to European competition spots.</p>


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<h2>Spurs’ Cristiano Romero subbed off due to injury</h2>



<p>Despite taking an early lead, Spurs suffered a significant setback in the first half when star defender <strong>Cristian Romero</strong> was forced off in the 15th minute with an injury. He was replaced by <strong>Radu Dragusin</strong>.</p>



<p>Romero had shown signs of discomfort early in the match, but it was a run to challenge midfielder <strong>Moises Caicedo</strong> that led to him going down, clutching his leg. Romero was able to walk off the pitch unaided and was later seen on the bench, which suggests the injury is not as severe as initially feared.</p>



<p><strong>This marked Romero’s first appearance since his previous injury</strong>, which kept him sidelined for Spurs’ matches against Manchester City, AS Roma, Fulham, and Bournemouth. <strong>After suffering a ligament injury to his right toe</strong>, Romero was recovering, but now he faces another potential setback, <strong>though the nature of this injury has yet to be confirmed</strong>.</p>

Chelsea's Marc Cucurella changes boots amid game after costly mistakes against Spurs

Chelsea's Marc Cucurella changes boots amid game after costly mistakes against Spurs - World Soccer Talk

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<p>Chelsea may send two players to Atletico Madrid as part of a swap deal to permanently land Joao Felix. Given the fact that Atletico will not give away its talisman for cheap, Chelsea may want to limit its spending. Moreover, there are too many players at the club after a spending spree under Todd Boehly. A swap deal alleviates some of the crowded squad.</p>



<p>According to the <em><a href="https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/chelsea-transfer-news-joao-felix-atletico-pochettino-b1079734.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Evening Standard</a>,</em> the two players Chelsea could part with are Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Marc Cucurella. Both players have experience in LaLiga. Aubameyang spent a portion of the 2021/22 campaign with FC Barcelona. Then, before joining Brighton and Hove Albion, Cucurella made 38 appearances with Getafe.</p>



<p>Atletico Madrid expects over $100 million from Chelsea for Joao Felix. <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/pochettino-negotiating-own-deal-as-chelsea-move-nears-20230427-WST-430329.html">Mauricio Pochettino is looking likely</a> to take over at Chelsea in the summer. The Argentine will have major implications on the Chelsea squad. That starts with Felix, who hinted at staying at the Stamford Bridge club by raising his jersey after scoring against Bournemouth at the weekend.</p>



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<div class="ck-twitter"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Joao Felix, woah! 🎶 <a href="https://t.co/uKNjFQF9z6">pic.twitter.com/uKNjFQF9z6</a></p>— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChelseaFC/status/1655145446598385665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2023</a></blockquote></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p>The potential for a Felix swap deal helps the club step around financial fair play, where Chelsea is under the watchful eye of <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/chelsea-accumulate-1billion-loss-but-claim-ffp-compliance-20230409-WST-427534.html">UEFA and Financial Fair Play</a>. Record spending in the winter with a handful of expensive acquisitions, notably Mykhailo Mudryk and Enzo Fernandez, could limit the spending this summer.</p>



<h2>Felix swap deal allows Chelsea to keep money</h2>



<p>Chelsea’s reported <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/chelsea-financial-results-for-2021-22-show-148-million-loss-20230327-WST-425526.html">losses of around $150 million</a> could put some top talent on the chopping block at Stamford Bridge. The <em>Evening Standard </em>listed Mateo Kovacic, Christian Pulisic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Edouard Mendy, Hakim Ziyech, Conor Gallagher, Kalidou Koulibaly and Mason Mount as players that are likely to leave. The <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/chelsea-academy-staff-may-quit-over-potential-player-clear-out-20230502-WST-431406.html">threat to homegrown talents</a> has led to some disapproval within the Chelsea academy coaching staff. </p>



<p>However, Chelsea is <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/chelsea-close-to-hiring-mauricio-pochettino-as-manager-20230424-WST-429879.html">waiting for Pochettino</a> to have a say. The Argentine is certainly the frontrunner to be the Chelsea manager ahead of next season. For now, Frank Lampard leads the club into its final three games of the season.</p>



<p><em>PHOTO: IMAGO / Action Plus</em></p>


Joao Felix is a permanent target for Chelsea, and he may be able to stay if the club can pull off a swap deal with Atletico Madrid.

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Chelsea's Marc Cucurella changes boots amid game after costly mistakes against Spurs

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Chelsea may use two players in swap deal for Joao Felix