Huge Cucurella fee shows high price of a little Premier League experience

Chelsea committed a reported 62 million pounds on Friday to buy Spanish left back Marc Cucurella from Brighton & Hove Albion with the south coast club collecting a 46 million pound profit on a player they had signed just 12 months ago.

The transfer is one of the most striking examples of how much a player's value is impacted by having proven they can cope with the demands of the Premier League - even for just one season.

In August last year, Brighton bought Cucurella from Spanish club Getafe for around 16 million pounds and he enjoyed an impressive first campaign in the English top flight.

Champions Manchester City were keen to sign the Barcelona youth product but baulked at Brighton's asking price. Chelsea, now owned by American Todd Boehly and private equity backers, stepped in to seal the deal for a reported 55 million pounds plus add-ons.

Brighton manager Graham Potter said the club didn't need to sell the player but unsurprisingly acknowledged it was good business.

"I think the right fee has been got and it's another situation where everyone has won," he said.

"The player has got a great opportunity, the selling club have got a good fee and the buying club have got a good player. So win, win, win all around," he said.

Cucurella's agent would no doubt concur.

Brighton pulled off a similar piece of business last year when they sold central defender Ben White, who also had played just one season in the top flight, to Arsenal for a reported 52 million pounds.

White had come through the youth ranks at Brighton and so that deal represented a 100% profit for the club and as with Cucurella, the price raised many eyebrows.

In fact, the sales of Cucurella and White exceed what Brighton paid to build their Amex stadium which cost 93 million pounds.

The calculation for Cucurella however shows that his market value went up by an impressive 1.3 million pounds per game.

The Chelsea purchase was described as "nonsensical" by former Arsenal defender Martin Keown.
"It does feel like it's panic buying. The new owner has come in and he wants to make a difference. On the eve of the new season, he's making a statement with that kind of signing. Is it overspending? I think maybe it is," he said.