Real Madrid 'open to signing Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella in January'

Chelsea reportedly remain open to offers for Marc Cucurella in January, a stance that could interest Real Madrid.

Soon after the takeover by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, £62m was committed to signing Cucurella from Brighton & Hove Albion.

However, the transfer has not worked out as Chelsea or Cucurella would have hoped, with the Spain international failing to make a positive impact at Stamford Bridge.

While the 25-year-old has starred in the odd fixture, he has generally underwhelmed during his 28 starts and seven substitute outings in all competitions.

Manchester United tried and failed to sign Cucurella on loan in the summer, only for a deal to break down through the player's appearance in the EFL Cup and United wishing to insert a clause that allowed them to cut short the agreement in January.

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Since then, Cucurella has not played a single minute in the Premier League and has instead been restricted to two starts in the EFL Cup, with the second occurring against Brighton on Wednesday night.

Cucurella deputised at right-back and helped Chelsea to a 1-0 victory over his former employers, yet it appears that an exit in January remains in the offing.

According to ESPN, the West Londoners remain open to parting ways with Cucurella in January and the player himself is open to taking on a different challenge.

The report alludes to Spanish media indicating that Real are monitoring the situation ahead of trying to negotiate some sort of deal with their Chelsea counterparts.

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Carlo Ancelotti has a range of options available to him at left-back with David Alaba, Ferland Mendy, Fran Garcia, Nacho and Eduardo Camavinga all capable of playing in that role.

Nevertheless, it appears that Los Blancos would consider handing Cucurella an opportunity to return to Spain, where he has previously represented Barcelona, Eibar and Real Betis.

Real have history of negotiating loan deals with Chelsea in recent months having successfully signed goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga via that route, despite his status as Chelsea number one at the time.

With Real not in a position to shell out big money on a left-back, a loan fee and covering a substantial portion of Cucurella's wages would likely be the best chance of any agreement being reached at the midway point of the season.