Troy Deeney has admitted Marc Cucurella has won him over after having initial doubts over the Spain international’s ability.
Chelsea have made a brilliant start to the season and Enzo Maresca has been able to raise the levels of a number of players.
The Blues currently find themselves second in the table, just two points behind leaders Liverpool and have lost just two of their 16 matches, whilst they are also the top scorers in the league.
Deeney impressed by Cucurella
Chelsea are well ahead of expectations and find themselves in the title conversation, even though Enzo Maresca has consistently played down that they are.
Cole Palmer has stolen the headlines along with the likes of Moises Caicedo and Nicolas Jackson, but Cucurella has also been one of Chelsea’s top performers.
The Spaniard has produced a series of impressive performances and the transformation in his Chelsea career has been remarkable given he was booed at times in his first season with the club.
Cucurella is one of the of the first names on the team sheet and scored his first league goal for the club in the win against Brentford on Sunday.
Unfortunately the 26-year-old got himself sent off after picking up a second yellow card after the final whistle, but Deeney still named him in his team of the week.
“I can’t deny he’s been playing really well for Chelsea this year,” he told BBC Sport.
“He stupidly got sent off at the end of the game but even so he is performing above expectation.”
Maresca will be keen to ensure discipline doesn’t get out of control with the Blues picking up a lot of yellow cards, and both Jackson and Robert Sanchez are one booking away from a suspension.
Cucurella won’t feature against Everton on Sunday and it will be interesting to see if he features in the Conference League against Shamrock Rovers on Thursday just to keep him sharp before the game against Fulham on Boxing Day.