Marc Pubill has already told Marc Cucurella to come to Atletico Madrid. The Atletico defender said, "Yes, of course, I’ve already told him!" while Cucurella continues to leave the door open to a future return to Spain. That is what gives this rumour more life than the usual summer noise around Chelsea players.

Why Pubill's pitch matters

Pubill’s line is cheeky, but it is also unusually direct for a transfer story that already has enough moving parts. Cucurella has said, "Spain is always Spain. It is where I grew up and you always think about going back." He also added, "But I would [prefer to] leave it for a few years down the line. I am very happy here and it is a great life experience."

That is not a player forcing the issue. It is a player who is comfortable, but not fully closed off. He went further by saying, "It is clear if that situation did arise, it is hard to turn down, but I would have to consider it in the end." The family angle matters too, because he said, "It is not just me, I also have to think about my family and together we would have to decide what's best for us."

Why Atletico are in the conversation

Chelsea paid £63 million for Cucurella from Brighton in 2022, making him the most expensive left-back in football history at the time. He is also not on the fringes at Stamford Bridge. He has made 34 Chelsea appearances in 2025, with 4 total goal contributions, and has also played 9 Champions League matches this year.

Even so, the move does not feel far-fetched for Atletico. They finished third in La Liga with 69 points from 37 matches, and the source reporting on their interest says they head into 2026-27 with only one left back available. Chelsea’s recent form has also been uneven, with results of loss, win, loss, draw and loss in their last five matches. None of that guarantees a sale or a bid, but it explains why the story keeps coming back.

The cleaner read is that Atletico are a real option, not an inevitable one. Barcelona and Real Madrid are also in the wider picture, so this is not a one-club chase. But Pubill publicly recruiting Cucurella, and Cucurella openly leaving the door ajar, is enough to keep Atletico right in the middle of it.

If the Spain return really does move from possibility to negotiation, Pubill has already done his bit by making the sales pitch in public.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 3 outlets. How we work →