Marc Cucurella was 'close' to joining Real Madrid before moving to England

Marc Cucurella was offered to Real Madrid during his time at Getafe and was 'close' to finalising a move to the Santiago Bernabeu, according to the club's president.

The left-back has enjoyed a mighty resurgence this year. After largely underwhelming for Chelsea following his £62m transfer from Brighton & Hove Albion in 2022, Cucurella has rediscovered his best form and managed to work his way back into the Spain squad for Euro 2024.

Cucurella was among La Roja's best players in their opening wins against Croatia and Italy, leading to widespread praise back in his home country.

Prior to joining Brighton in 2021, Cucurella spent two years with Getafe. Speaking at their kit launch for the 2024/25 season, club president Angel Torres Sanchez revealed the left-back could have signed for Madrid upon leaving Getafe instead.

"I'm not surprised by the good Euros that Cucurella is doing; I offered him to Real Madrid when I was here," Torres Sanchez said. "[The transfer was] close to being done."

Though Cucurella was on the verge of joining Madrid, he is in fact a product of the Barcelona academy. He spent two seasons in the first-team, though in that time only made one senior appearance and was loaned out to Eibar and Getafe, eventually signing for the latter on a permanent transfer.

Cucurella enjoyed one year with Brighton before earning his move to Chelsea, where he has made 59 appearances so far. He regained his place in the starting lineup towards the end of the 2023/24 campaign, excelling in an inverted full-back role.

Cucurella and Spain have sealed their spot in the knockout stages of Euro 2024 and return to action on Monday evening against Albania in Dusseldorf.

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