Spain manager Luis de la Fuente hailed Marc Cucurella as “sensational” after the 4–1 Nations League win over Croatia.

The Real Madrid summer signing continued his World Cup form, with a typical end-to-end performance in which he made five defensive contributions, won six out of seven duels, created two chances and had four touches in the opposition’s box.

However, while the sight of Cucurella dominating as a marauding, two-way fullback is nothing new for Spain, Real Madrid fans have yet to see the best of the 28-year-old since his €55 million ($62 million) move from Chelsea.

Cucurella has hardly flopped at the Bernabéu and is being judged on a small sample size, but he has struggled to impact games in the way he has for his country on a regular basis.

Los Blancos’ defensive frailties have been centerfold since the start of 2026–27 season. José Mourinho’s team has kept just one clean sheet in eight games thus far, while Cucurella has contributed to shaky displays against Atlético Madrid, Elche and Real Betis.

Country Over Club

Following the commanding win over Croatia which puts Spain on a record 40-match unbeaten streak, De la Fuente admitted players, including Cucurella, seem to up their game when with the national team.

“With us, something happens that we see with many players,” he said. “When they join the national team, they transform. Some sometimes show a level far superior to what they show at their club.

“Perhaps because they feel very comfortable here, because our style suits them perfectly.”

Cucurella is far from the only player affected by this phenomenon. Unai Simón endured a relatively poor season in 2025–26. The goalkeeper had just the 17th-highest save percentage in La Liga with 64.9%, while finishing 12th with Athletic Club. Nevertheless, he went on to concede just once with Spain at the 2026 World Cup and was awarded the tournament’s Golden Glove.

The likes of Aymeric Laporte, Pedro Porro and Mikel Oyarzabal are among others whose international forms have regularly superseded their club offerings, with De la Fuente apparently able to foster a system and environment that allows his stars to be their best selves on the pitch.

Cucurella’s Madrid Challenge

When De la Fuente’s World Cup roster was announced, there were eyebrows raised that it did not include a single Real Madrid player for the first time in history. That was soon rectified when Cucurella joined Los Blancos on the eve of the tournament, and the one-time Barcelona left back paraded soccer’s most famous trophy at the Bernabéu at the start of this season. The next goal for Cucurella is to bring his Spain form back with him too.

Madrid signed Cucurella to be the elite-level left back they have missed in recent years, with Ferland Mendy permanently injured and Álvaro Carreras getting schooled too many times by the world’s finest wingers. Mourinho supposedly told Real Madrid President Florentino Pérez that he wanted Cucurella or no one this summer, such was his faith in the fullback.

However, so far this season, the former Chelsea man has had to share the position with Carreras and has failed to establish himself as the man to fix Madrid’s issues.

Some of that is down to teething problems, with Madrid signing three new defenders this season (Cucurella, plus Ibrahima Konaté and Denzel Dumfries), while the team looks to get up to speed with Mourinho’s ideas. But with Barça already enjoying a comfortable lead in La Liga and the first Clásico of the season fast approaching, the pressure is ramping up.

Madrid fans will hope the kinks are worked out sooner rather than later and that Mourinho can find some of De la Fuente’s magic formula that unleashes arguably the best left back in the world.