Arsenal star Bukayo Saka has been predicted to ‘get the better of’ Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella in the Euro 2024 final between England and Spain.
Following a slow start to the Euros, Saka is starting to find his best form at the tournament and delivered an excellent performance in the quarter-final win over Switzerland, scoring England’s 80th-minute equaliser and then converting a penalty in the shootout.
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Similarly, England struggled during the group stage and needed a last-minute overhead kick from Jude Bellingham to avoid defeat to Slovakia.
The Three Lions also had to come from behind against Switzerland and the Netherlands, though their display against the Dutch was arguably their best since arriving in Germany last month.
One promising route for England will be down the right-flank, with Saka finding form after another successful season for Premier League runners-up Arsenal and set to face Chelsea defender Cucurella.
Cucurella has been a surprising standout at Euro 2024 after largely failing to justify his £62m price-tag since joining Chelsea from Brighton in 2022, and former Premier League manager Harry Redknapp expects him to struggle against Saka.
‘Phil Foden has been different class since Gareth Southgate moved him inside, and Spain have a huge issue in how they cope with him,’ Redknapp told The Sun.
‘And what about Bukayo Saka? If he’s in the same form as the last two games, would you fancy Marc Cucurella to get the better of him? I certainly wouldn’t.’
Redknapp also supported Harry Kane to retain his place in the England team and outperform Spain striker Alvaro Morata.
‘Then there’s captain Harry,’ he added. ‘Fair enough, I accept he’s not in the form of his life right now, maybe he isn’t 100 per cent.
‘But he’s still got three goals, there’s every likelihood he will finish the Euros as top scorer, and here’s a question.
‘It’s an absolute no-brainer. Morata gets through a ton of work but let’s make no bones about it, he was something of a disaster when he played at Chelsea.
‘In terms of the world’s great strikers, the genuine goalscoring centre-forwards, if you were picking the best around, he would be lucky to make the top ten. Harry, for me, would be No 1.
‘To think there were people who felt he should be dropped for the semi! To be honest Gareth won’t want to make any changes for the final, either.’
