Real Madrid have reached a verbal agreement to sign Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella, according to a report from transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano.
Cucurella joined the Blues from Brighton in 2022 and has made 163 appearances for the club, scoring nine goals and winning the Conference League and Club World Cup.
He is under contract until 2029 but, according to Romano, is now set to return to Spain after the World Cup comes to an end, with an agreement between all parties in place.
The deal is reported to be worth €60million (£51.78m), with Chelsea paying a fixed fee of €55m and €5m in bonuses.
Cucurella, who came through Barcelona’s youth set-up and played one game for Madrid’s arch rivals in the 2017-18 Copa del Rey, is Spain’s first-choice left-back and will play a key role in La Roja’s efforts to regain the trophy.
And Madrid boss Jose Mourinho has identified Cucurella as the player he wants on the left side of defence, where the Portuguese is reportedly seeking an overhaul.
Madrid have Alvaro Carreras, Fran García and Ferland Mendy among their left-back options.
However, Mendy is set to be sidelined until April next year with a detached hamstring tendon, while there is speculation surrounding the future of both Carreras and Garcia. There have been reports suggesting both Carreras and Garcia are players that Mourinho views as surplus to requirements.
The signing of Cucurella would give Mourinho a dependable option in that spot, with defence clearly an area of focus for Madrid as they respond to a trophy-less 2025-26 season.
Madrid have agreed a deal to sign Netherlands right-back Denzel Dumfries from Inter, while France centre-back Ibrahima Konate has a verbal agreement to join Los Blancos when his Liverpool contract expires at the end of the month.
