March 31: Chelsea's youth-heavy recruitment strategy may have complicated their ability to compete for major trophies, according to left back Marc Cucurella. The club was eliminated from the Champions League after an 8-2 aggregate defeat by Paris St Germain in the last 16 and has won only four of their last 12 matches across all competitions.
Cucurella told The Athletic that while signing young players is part of the club's policy, it might complicate achieving major honors. He noted that against PSG, they lacked experienced players who had been through similar situations.
The 27-year-old also criticized the January departure of head coach Enzo Maresca, saying the timing of such changes should be reconsidered to allow proper preparation for the new manager and players.