{"id":47100,"date":"2026-04-04T12:36:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T07:06:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/?p=47100"},"modified":"2026-04-04T12:36:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T07:06:22","slug":"marc-cucurella-names-nuno-mendes-as-the-worlds-best-left-back-but-insists-hes-in-top-form-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/football\/marc-cucurella-names-nuno-mendes-as-the-worlds-best-left-back-but-insists-hes-in-top-form-too\/","title":{"rendered":"Marc Cucurella names Nuno Mendes as the world\u2019s best left-back \u2013 but insists he\u2019s in top form too"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a refreshing display of honesty and respect, Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella<\/strong> has openly acknowledged that Paris Saint-Germain star Nuno Mendes<\/strong> is currently the best left-back on the planet, while confidently stating that he himself is performing at a very high level.<\/p>\n

Speaking to Spanish radio station RNE Deportes<\/em>, the Spanish international said: \u201cI\u2019m at a very good level\u2026 but Nuno Mendes is the best left back in the world.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Humble Yet Confident Admission from Cucurella<\/h3>\n

Cucurella, who has been in strong form for Chelsea this season, didn\u2019t shy away from praising his rival. The 27-year-old has impressed with his versatility, defensive solidity, and ability to contribute going forward under various managers. His comments come amid ongoing debates in football circles about who reigns supreme at left-back in 2026.<\/p>\n

Many experts and fans already rate Nuno Mendes<\/strong> as the clear No. 1 in the position. The Portuguese international has dazzled at PSG with his explosive pace, dribbling, defensive recoveries, and attacking output \u2014 often described as the \u201cblueprint\u201d for the modern left-back. Recent rankings have placed him firmly at the top, ahead of names like Alejandro Balde, Alphonso Davies, and others.<\/p>\n

Cucurella\u2019s willingness to crown Mendes while backing his own performances shows maturity and self-awareness \u2014 a rare trait in today\u2019s hyper-competitive football environment.<\/p>\n

What This Means Moving Forward<\/h3>\n

Cucurella\u2019s form has been a bright spot for Chelsea, helping stabilize their defense. Meanwhile, Mendes continues to shine in Ligue 1 and Europe with PSG. With both players representing their national teams (Spain and Portugal), fans could see more direct or indirect clashes in upcoming international fixtures.<\/p>\n

For now, one thing is clear: even one of the Premier League\u2019s standout left-backs believes Nuno Mendes<\/strong> sits alone at the summit.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a refreshing display of honesty and respect, Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella has openly acknowledged that Paris Saint-Germain star Nuno\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":502,"featured_media":47103,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[4403,3365,4057],"class_list":["post-47100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football","tag-chelsea-defender","tag-marc-cucurella","tag-top-stories"],"reading_time":"2 min read","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/502"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47100"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47100\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":47106,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47100\/revisions\/47106"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}