Erling Haaland harvested his pound of flesh on Marc Cucurella during Man City’s opening Premier League win over Chelsea.
Chelsea opened their 2024-25 Premier League campaign on a disappointing note, losing 2-0 to the defending champions at Stamford Bridge. It was a battle between the master and his former servant as Pep Guardiola and Enzo Maresca met for the first time on the touchlines as managers in the Premier League.
Recall Maresca worked with Pep Guardiola in the Man City coaching crew before joining Leicester City as manager in 2023, where he won the England Championship and returned the team to the elite division on their first attempt.
Coming up against his former boss, not much was expected of the Italian and it turned out as widely predicted – a defeat for Chelsea. Goals from Erling Haaland and Mateo Kovacic saw City ease to a 2-0 victory to kick off their title defense on a winning note.
Erling Haaland claps back at Marc Cucurella
Cucurella raised eyebrows when he aimed a subtle dig at Erling Haaland after Spain’s Euro 2024 triumph. In footage that made the rounds on social media, the Spanish left-back, who played a crucial role in La Roja’s triumph in Germany, celebrated the victory with his Spain national teammates with a mocking chant that reads;
“Cucu, Cucurella, he eats paella, Cucu, Cucurella, he drinks Estrella, Haaland, you’d better tremble as Cucurella is coming.”
In the match against Manchester City on Sunday, he would share the pitch again with Erling Haaland. In the 78th minute, a more-like-scripted scene surfaced. Cucurella was down on the pitch with a cramp and was looking up to Haaland, the closest player, to help him stand up but was ignored by the Norwegian. His teammate Pedro Neto would later come to his assistance.
When Haaland was asked about the incident after the match, the Man City forward described Cucurella as a funny man for making a chant about him.
“Well, Cucurella is a funny man. Last season he asked for my shirt… and this summer he sings a song about me,” he told Viaplay Fotball.
It was the first time Erling Haaland had addressed Cucurella’s mocking chant after the 2024 Euros. Good for the Norwegian, the 78th-minute incident seemed more like a scripted chapter to allow the 24-year-old also take his pound of flesh on the Spaniard. Moreso, Marc Cucurella was the last Chelsea defender Erling Haaland beat to open the scoring for Manchester City in the 17th minute.
Notably, Haaland’s goal against the Blues has now seen the player score five goals in the opening Premier League matchweek. He will hope to continue on his brilliant start as City aims for a fifth successive Premier League title.
Todd Boehly angrily storms out of Chelsea Stadium after Manchester City doubled lead
Chelsea’s opening capitulation by Manchester City was not only a difficult result for the fans but for the club’s owner, Todd Boehly, as well. While trailing by a lone goal into the final minutes of the game, a more solid second-half performance was reassuring that they could peg back City to a draw.
However, such hopes were dashed in the final minutes. The club’s former player Mateo Kovacic scored a stunner from the edge of the box, beating Robert Sanchez with a thunderbolt. Immediately after Kovacic scored the second goal, Todd Boehly yanked himself off his seat and stormed out of the stadium.
The American venture capitalist has sunk about £1.9bn into the club, signing several players since he took over in 2022. Two years and counting, it appears the heavy capital outlay and investments have gone down the drain with disappointing on-field performances as the Man City game.
Nevertheless, with a new manager, Enzo Maresca, now in charge, Boehly will be hoping for a turnaround soon.
