{"id":6436,"date":"2026-09-30T06:40:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-30T06:40:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/?p=6436"},"modified":"2026-09-30T06:40:11","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T06:40:11","slug":"spain-duo-star-in-croatia-win-and-show-exactly-why-chelsea-were-interested-in-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/?p=6436","title":{"rendered":"Spain duo star in Croatia win and show exactly why Chelsea were interested in them"},"content":{"rendered":"


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There was no Chelsea representation in Spain\u2019s 4-1 victory over Croatia on Tuesday night.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nevertheless, it was a UEFA Nations League game that would have still interested the club. Spain fielded quite a few players who have been tracked by Chelsea<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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While Chelsea did not have any representatives at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on the night, there were some ex-Blues on the pitch. Real Madrid star Marc Cucurella, who left Stamford Bridge for the Santiago Bernabeu in the summer, started for Spain.<\/p>\n

Mateo Kovacic and Mario Pasalic also picked up some minutes but could not prevent Croatia from losing against the world champions.<\/p>\n

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What do you make of the criticism Cole Palmer has faced since withdrawing from the England squad?<\/h3>\n

Rio Ferdinand is still a fan!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Martin Zubimendi and Fabian Ruiz shine in Spain vs Croatia after Chelsea interest<\/h2>\n

Arsenal\u2019s Martin Zubimendi<\/a> and Paris Saint-Germain\u2019s Fabian Ruiz lined up alongside Cucurella for Spain, and both midfielders put in good displays. If any Chelsea scouts were watching, they would have been impressed.<\/p>\n

During the summer transfer window, Chelsea considered making a move for Zubimendi<\/a> in their search for a replacement for Enzo Fernandez, but Arsenal were unwilling to sell the 27-year-old. It is thought that the Blues also had Ruiz on their radar.<\/p>\n

In August, it was claimed that Chelsea were making checks on Ruiz<\/a>, but nothing materialised in the end. It is a shame, as Ruiz and Zubimendi are superb midfield players and showed that against Croatia.<\/p>\n

As you would expect being Spanish midfielders, Zubimendi and Ruiz were both excellent on the ball. According to Sofascore<\/a>, the former misplaced just one pass all night, completing 65 out of 66 to give himself a pass success rate of 98%.<\/p>\n

Ruiz\u2019s passing was almost as accurate. The PSG star completed 40 out of 44 passes, meaning that he had a pass success rate of 91%.<\/p>\n

Chelsea have lacked control in the engine room this season, which is hardly a surprise given that Xabi Alonso<\/a> has been forced to use right-backs there. If they had Zubimendi or Ruiz, it would have been a completely different story.<\/p>\n

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