Chelsea stars Enzo Fernandez, Marc Cucurella and Joao Pedro were spotted enjoying some downtime in Madrid on Monday – less than 24 hours after helping the club reach the FA Cup final.
The trio all played a key role on Sunday as the Blues beat Leeds 1-0 at Wembley, with Fernandez scoring the winning goal in the first half.
They were joined by Cucurella’s partner Claudia Rodriguez – who he shares three children with – and Pedro’s girlfriend Khadije Skandar.
The group were in Spain to watch some tennis in the form of the Madrid Open after Chelsea interim boss Calum McFarlane granted his squad some time off following their cup win, which came just days after Liam Rosenior was sacked.
Pictures from the Spanish capital showed Fernandez and Co leaving a high-end, exclusive restaurant before walking the streets in pleasant April weather.
However, Fernandez’s presence in Madrid was ironic given he controversially appeared to issue a come-and-get-me plea to Real Madrid just last month.
Enzo Fernandez was spotted in Madrid on Monday, a month after his controversial comments
Fernandez was joined by his Chelsea team-mates Marc Cucurella (middle) and Joao Pedro (left), and their partners Claudia Rodriguez (second right) and Khadije Skandar (second left)
During an appearance on the Avirales YouTube channel, Fernandez expressed a desire to live in the city one day, throwing his Chelsea future into doubt.
‘I’d like to live in Spain,’ he said. ‘I really like Madrid; it reminds me of Buenos Aires.
‘Players live where they want. I’d live in Madrid. I get by in English, but I’d be more comfortable in Spanish.’
He also hailed Real legends Toni Kroos and Luka Modric, and it came following multiple other interviews where he questioned his future at Stamford Bridge.
This included Fernandez admitting he does not know if he will still be with Chelsea beyond this summer and another where he criticised the club for losing former manager Enzo Maresca.
Fernandez was subsequently banned for two games over those comments, which Chelsea felt crossed the line – and he was forced to apologise to Rosenior.
The 25-year-old – who joined Chelsea from Benfica for a then record £106.8million in 2023 – held internal peace talks but his agent Javier Pastore still hit out at the ban and defended his client.
Pastore said: ‘The punishment is completely unfair – banning the player for two matches, which moreover are also absolutely crucial for Chelsea because qualification for the Champions League is at stake and he is one of the team’s most important players.
‘I think it’s far too harsh given Chelsea’s current situation, and there’s no real reason or justification for why he has been banned.’
Pastore also insisted the interview was blown out of proportion and added: ‘We don’t understand the punishment because he doesn’t mention any club or say he wants to leave Chelsea, far from it; he only mentions Madrid, the city, because he was asked which European city he’d like to live in one day.’
Speaking about the incident at the time, Rosenior had said: ‘It’s a serious meeting about something very serious. I’m not questioning Enzo’s character, I’m not questioning who he is as a person.
‘I believe people make mistakes and you can’t overstep the punishment for the mistake.
‘We’ve made a sanction, we made a decision, I made a decision, and what I want for Enzo is for him to come on here and have an outstanding career.
The group were seen leaving an exclusive restaurant and walking down the streets of Madrid
Last year Fernandez and Cucurella were joined by Pedro Neto at the Madrid Open tournament
‘He won’t play on Sunday, but hopefully after that, he’ll be a massive part of the group moving forward.
‘There are still a few hurdles that need to be overcome that I won’t go into, but at the same time I want every player really, really focused now on a huge run.’
After missing Chelsea’s FA Cup win over Port Vale and defeat by Man City, Fernandez – who has often captained the club this season in the absence of Reece James, including against Leeds – has started their last three games.
His trip to Madrid does come after he also attended last year’s tournament with team-mates Pedro Neto and Cucurella.
The Blues return to action on Monday when they host Nottingham Forest.
