Chelsea star defender Marc Cucurella has justified matters with West Ham United's Adama Traore on a Spanish TV after last weekend's incident in the London derby.
Marc Cucurella makes hilarious admission
Deep into added time of Chelsea's 3-2 win against West Ham, fracas broke out between players from both sides. After Chelsea had turned the tie around through Enzo Fernandes, Traore floored Cucurella close to the touchline as the Hammers looked for an equalizer.
Joao Pedro then came in front to defend his teammate, sparking a brief scuffle that resulted in yellow cards for both Traore and Pedro, while Cucurella escaped punishment.
Cucurella, while speaking to 3 Cat Fanzone show, accepted that he tried to wind Traore up late in the game.
“It was late in the game,” he said. “We were barging into one another and I felt myself very close to him, and I thought, well, I'm going to stick my head in here to see if I can stir things up a bit. He grabbed me, threw me where he could, and a big brawl broke out.”
The defender was keen to play down any lasting bad feelings, though he did joke about the fallout away from the field.
“These are things that happen. I have no problem. Although if I ran into him on the street, I’d hesitate to say hello after this,” he added.
It was all smiles and a moment of appreciation from Cucurella when told he did not have to wait long, as the West Ham winger joined the show. Like Cucurella, Traore downplayed any bad blood between them, saying:
“He's a really good guy. It's nothing personal and there will never be. It all stays on the pitch, it was just the heat of the moment. I really didn't mean to do it, it wasn't my intention. I just wanted to talk to the linesman.”
Both players then broke into laughter after Cucurella said:
“Now I'm calm because there's a screen between us.”
Interestingly, Cucurella and Traore came through the ranks at Barcelona, and both also played for the senior team.
Cucurella makes funny claim after row with Traore in Chelsea vs West Ham clash
Cucurella hilariously accepted that teammate Joao Pedro saved his life after Traore went berserk in last Saturday's derby. He joked that he would have run backwards if he was in the place of the Brazilian.
“Joao Pedro saved my life; honestly, if I were Joao, I would have run backwards,” the Spaniard quipped.
Chelsea will next face Wolves in a Premier League game.