Thomas Tuchel breaks silence on ‘fantastic’ Chelsea target Marc Cucurella as £60million deal for Brighton star looms with Levi Colwill set to join Graham Potter’s side

Thomas Tuchel has confirmed Chelsea’s move for Marc Cucurella and is hopeful a deal can be completed before the weekend.

The Blues have agreed a deal with Brighton worth in excess of £60million for the defender, talkSPORT understands.

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This transfer comes as a welcome boost for Tuchel’s side as they prepare to get their campaign underway this weekend with a tricky clash with Everton taking place on Saturday.

Cucurella has attracted plenty of interest this summer, including admiring glances from Premier League champions Manchester City, but according to Tuchel, a deal is close.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, he said: “It’s not done yet.

“The paperwork is in process and hopefully we can get it finished before noon and Marc is our player.

“Marc is a fantastic player, young player.

“He’s young, hungry, mobile, very intelligent player in several positions in our system. That’s why we hope that the transfer goes through.”

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Levi Colwill has been discussed as part of the deal with a loan switch to Brighton expecting to be completed, something that Tuchel believes could be beneficial for him.

He said: “It’s a bit hard to judge him.

“He came back and there wasn’t a lot of time in pre-season because he got an injury.

“At the moment it’s very individual, and if there is the chance for him to have a good loan and develop and improve, we are open to solutions.”

Given that Chelsea have missed out on deals for the likes of Jules Kounde, Matthijs de Ligt, Nathan Ake and Presnel Kimpembe in defence this summer, fans have been critical of the club’s transfer business.

But, according to Tuchel, it’s part and parcel of the challenges of life under new ownership.

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He explained: “New ownership and stepping into the transfer market is maybe one of the toughest things you can do.

“I don’t know when they sleep, maybe they never sleep, but we have an open and honest line of communication.

“We have a delay because of the sanctions and that led to the loss of key players. But both of the owners involved in the daily buiness do a fantastic job so far.”

The Premier League is back and talkSPORT has it covered, with games on Friday, Saturday and Monday, beginning with Crystal Palace vs Arsenal on 5 August

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