Marc Cucurella has disclosed that he has been trying to persuade his Spain teammate Nico Williams to reject Barcelona’s offer and join Chelsea during Euro 2024.
Barcelona is eager to sign Williams to the Nou Camp this summer after his impressive tenure with Athletic Bilbao and his outstanding performances at the Euros.
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The 21-year-old, who has a £46.5m release clause, has started three out of Spain’s four matches in Germany and scored in their last-16 win against Georgia.
Spain defender Cucurella believes Williams would be an excellent addition to Barcelona but admits he hopes Williams opts for Chelsea, who have also shown interest in a summer transfer.
Cucurella started his professional career at Barcelona but made only one appearance for the club before moving to Getafe, Brighton, and eventually Chelsea.
‘He is a great player, he is bringing out all his potential,’ Cucurella told Spanish outlet SPORT when asked about Williams.
‘It is a source of pride that he is on our team, that he is our teammate and with players like him everything is easier.
‘He would be a great signing [for Barcelona], but it all depends on what he wants. I’ve been telling him to sign for Chelsea…
‘In the end everything depends on him, he is very young, with a lot of experience. I think he will be a great player.’
Spain have been the standout team so far at the Euros but Luis de la Fuente’s side will have to be at their best to beat Germany in a mouth-watering quarter-final on Friday.
‘It will be a very open match, which can be decided by small details,’ Cucurella said on Spain’s quarter-final clash. ‘We play these one-on-one matches very well.
‘We played two good matches against important rivals like Croatia and Italy and we must correct what we failed at, improve because it will be a demanding match and hopefully we will win.’
Cucurella will be playing under a new Chelsea boss next campaign after Enzo Maresca replaced Mauricio Pochettino in the Stamford Bridge hot-seat.
‘A good coach has come and we need a bit of patience, not to make so many changes, to be more calm,’ he said.
‘We finished the season very well, in Europe, and then we played a final and a semi-final. We didn’t win, but the year wasn’t bad. Hopefully we can build something good.’
Cucurella has also offered his support to Spanish striker Marc Guiu, who completed a £5m transfer move to Stamford Bridge from Barcelona this week.
‘We spoke and I told him that if he needed anything, he should let me know,’ the 25-year-old added.
‘I’m happy because he’s a great player, very young, with a very promising future and we’re going to take care of him so that he can play his best football.’
