Top 5% in Europe: Stats show this solid Chelsea star still isn’t getting credit he deserves | OneFootball

There was a lot of focus on the likes of Romeo Lavia, Moises Caicedo and Cole Palmer on Sunday for various reasons.

All played a crucial role as Chelsea beat Liverpool. But one player who didn’t get nearly as much pop, despite playing really well, was Marc Cucurella. Perhaps simply because he’s been consistently good all season.

His stats show how important he is for Enzo Maresca.

Spaniard’s attacking stats among the best in Europe

We all know about how good he is in the box – he was pretty much the only player capable of scoring from December until just a couple of weeks ago when we started to find some form again. That’s reflected in his “non-penalty goals” stat (FBRef), which sees him in the 89th percentile in the whole of Europe. His touches in the opposition box is in the 79th.

He’s even better in terms of pass completion – there he’s in the 95th percentile, helped out by his inverted role in Enzo Maresca’s possession heavy style. His influence on the team is evident in his touches – he’s in the 79th percentile for that.

Cucurella holds his own in defence too

Marc Cucurella gets stuck into a duel. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Defensively has often been where the Barcelona youth product is criticised, but he gets solid marks all around here – he’s in the 50th percentile or above for tackles, blocks, clearances and aerials won. It’s not his strong suit, but he’s not letting the team down. He did a great job on Sunday against a variety of Liverpool attackers sent on to challenge him.

Maresca has certainly helped coach him to improve defensively, and has also set up the team in a way which is able to protect him. If we’re going to make the top 5 places, we’re going to need him to keep it up for these huge final games.