Marc Cucurella has revealed he does not blame referee Anthony Taylor for Chelsea’s draw against Spurs on Sunday evening.
The Spaniard made his first start for the Blues against their London rivals after his move from Brighton in the summer.
He assisted Kalidou Koulibaly for the first goal of the game in the opening half, but was also involved in controversy at the end of the match.
In the buildup to Harry Kane’s equaliser in the 96h minute Cucurella had his hair pulled by Cristian Romero, and the foul went unpunished as Spurs snatched a late point.
Advert
Chelsea dominated the game and the result will feel like a loss given the circumstances, with their opponent’s first goal also proving to be controversial.
However, the 24-year-old does not wish to blame referee Taylor for his side’s draw against their rivals despite what happened during the game.
In his first press conference since his arrival this summer, he was asked if he thought the hair pull by Romero was a foul.
"Yes," he responded.
"For me it is too clear in the game, on the pitch. I didn't see it on the TV, the video.
“I think it's very clear but this is one error of the referee or VAR. Sometimes the referees have good decisions, sometimes not.
"This is not my problem. Maybe we need to work harder to not concede this goal in the last minute. I saw checking for a red card in the stadium. For me it is clear. In this moment, I don't know what happened.
"Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad. This is football. In this game it's an error and in other games maybe the referee gives good decisions."
Cucurella made his debut against Everton on the opening weekend of the new Premier League season, coming off the bench against the Toffees with 15 minutes remaining in the second half.
Sunday saw him play at Stamford Bridge for the first time in Chelsea colours, and the defender later commented on such an occasion in his second appearance for Thomas Tuchel's side.
"It's amazing,” he said.
“I remember last season playing for Brighton and we scored last minute. The stadium atmosphere is very good, the fans sing.
“The stadium is famous, a history stadium. To play for this club is very nice for me."
Cucurella is one of three major signings to have arrived at the Blues this summer, following Raheem Sterling and Koulibaly.
Despite not being at the club for long, he has already been heavily involved in the side and is set to compete with Ben Chilwell for the starting spot at left wing-back.
Topics: Marc Cucurella, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur
Robert Calcutt