"What is wrong with Marc Cucurella" - Chelsea and Brighton fans give their verdicts on struggling left back

The 24-year-old was booed off by his own supporters when substituted in the 67th minute of Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with West Ham at the London Stadium.

The Spaniard had given another below-par performance for his new club, giving the ball away for Emerson Palmieri's equaliser, and passing the ball backwards numerous times when given the opportunity to set Mykhailo Mudryk free down the left flank.

One fan created a reel of these moments on social media with the caption: “Cucurella apologizing to Mudryk every time he ignored his runs annoyed the s*** out of me.”

Another commented: “Cucurella must be an Arsenal fan to not want Mudryk to have any of the ball.”

A third fan wrote: “Over 15 back passes from Cucurella. I’m sorry for Mudryk.”

While a fourth said: “Cucurella plays against Chelsea cos what’s this??”

A fifth simply put: “What is wrong with Cucurella?”

Chelsea head coach Graham Potter was asked about the away supporters jeers towards one of their own players post-match. The ex-Brighton boss admitted Cucurella was not currently playing at his best, but still believed he would be a good player for the club.

He said: "Supporters are entitled to their opinion and they just want the team to do well. I don’t think Marc is in his absolute best moment, but at the same time he has been part of a team that has kept a clean sheer at Anfield and a clean sheet against Fulham.

“In the summer there was another club [Manchester City] was interested in Marc and looking at the points in the Premier League they are a good football club.

“He hasn't become a bad player, but some players can go through bad times, so we need to stick with him and stick together and try and help him.”

Cucurella joined Chelsea last summer from Brighton for £56m with a possible £7m in add-ons, breaking the world record fee for a left-back.

He is one of 16 players signed by the West London club this season, as part of new owner Todd Boehly’s £540m spending spree.

The former Albion Player of the Season has struggled since moving to the capital, facing criticism from supporters, pundits and ex-Chelsea players in his first 25 appearances for the club.

Last week, former Chelsea player Frank Lebouf said the the left back was not good enough to play for the two-time European champions.

The Frenchmen said: "We don't want to see Marc Cucurella anymore! The player is not good enough for Chelsea! It's as simple as that. It's crazy that they signed him for £60m or £70m, but we can see that he doesn't belong to this level!"

In December, Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher was also not impressed with Cucurella’s performance in Chelsea’s 1-0 loss to Manchester City at Stamford Bridge.

The ex-Liverpool defender said: “When you are talking about the price tag, he can’t defend. I was watching him during the game 1v1, it looked to me like he didn't want to defend in 1v1 situations.”

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In Cucurella’s defence, he is currently apart of a struggling Chelsea side still trying to find form under Potter, who has won just four of his last 17 games in charge in all competitions, leaving them ninth in the Premier League table and out of both domestic cup competitions.

In December, Potter jumped to Cucurella’s defence about his form, stating he was having to deal with a lot of the off-the-pitch issues.

The Chelsea boss said: “Marc’s had a lot to deal with, sometimes these things happen you settle into a new team, a new club, a new group.

“I think its been challenging for him. He’s had some things off the pitch as well family wise. It’s been difficult. There are many factors, sometimes you just see the guy on the pitch and you have a verdict on him, but there are all sort of things going on in his life.

"I know Marc well, I know Marc at his best and he is a top player.”

A number of Chelsea fans on social media continued to offer their support to the left back, with one saying: “Marc Cucurella really needs some time off from football and the team. Family issues are clearly affecting his game, and I think it would be best to give him time and space to deal with these. Let him come back stronger.”

Another agreed and said: “Cucurella hasn't been his best lately but I haven't given up on him yet, I think time on the bench will do him good.”