Spain star Marc Cucurella thrilled his local postman after the World Cup winner offered him the medal he won Stateside last month to wear after dropping off his deliveries.
The former Chelsea defender has been a Horsham resident for some years, moving there after a previous home was targeted by burglars shortly after his 2023 transfer to the west London club.
The West Sussex enclave provided a peaceful sanctuary for Cucurella and his young family, with locals frequently sharing their positive experiences on social media if they crossed the defender’s path.
But few can claim the experience his postman Gary enjoyed during one of his last rounds for the departing Real Madrid star.
Sharing his story with Horsham’s social media account, the postman said: ‘Had the pleasure of chatting to local World Cup winner Marc Cucurella while delivering his post today.
‘Very nice, down-to-earth guy. Let me hold his winners’ medal.
Marc Cucurella was praised for his thoughtful interaction with his local postman in Horsham
Gary the postman was allowed to try on Cucurella’s gold World Cup winners’ medal
‘I reckon I am the first Englishman to hold a World Cup winners’ medal in 60 years.’
Fans were quick to show their support for Cucurella’s once-in-a-lifetime gesture, with one commenting: ‘The biggest and greatest accolade for any football player. And he was kind enough to share that.’
Another added: ‘Amazing stuff. He sounds like a really nice guy.’
One chronicler of life in Horsham wrote: ‘Amazing. We keep hearing great things and sorry to be losing him. Wishing him the best of luck in his new adventures’.
In the photograph, Cucurella showed off his new braided hairstyle, a notable departure from his iconic curls.
Switching up his look has been just one piece of the 28-year-old’s post-World Cup celebrations, with the player also making good on his promise to ink the face of his manager Luis de la Fuente on his body.
Horsham’s social media account has previously shared snapshots of Cucurella’s life in the south of England, and cheered on their ‘local boy’ in Spain’s World Cup final against Argentina.
Since becoming a resident in the market town, Cucurella and his family have slotted in seamlessly to local life, interacting with other parents at their children’s schools and even becoming regular visitors to Indian restaurant Hen & Chicken.
Life in Horsham is likely one of the reasons that Cucurella’s partner Claudia Rodriguez admitted that she was feeling mixed emotions about his move back to Spain to join Real Madrid.
Posting on Instagram after the £47.4m deal was announced, she wrote: ‘I don’t know how to say goodbye to my home.’
‘Thank you to everyone who has been a part of this experience; I feel so lucky for everything we’ve shared these past years. I arrived with two babies and I’m leaving with two little boys and a British girl, and I don’t know how I’m going to explain to them that Chelsea is no longer part of our lives.
‘Everything we’ve experienced these past years has been a pure learning experience; we’ve lived through it all, but above all, we’ve enjoyed this journey. Thank you to everyone who has been a part of this chapter of our lives, thank you to my girls, whom I’m going to miss a lot, and thank you to every Blue I’ve met. I wish you all the best; London will always be Blue.’
Cucurella’s partner Claudia Rodriguez spoke last month about her sadness at leaving England
Rodriguez’s comments come in stark contrast to how she felt before the family moved into their latest house in England.
In the wake of the traumatising burglary, the influencer told Daily Mail Sport that she had been afraid to go to sleep.
‘The security is one of things I’m more worried about,’ Rodriguez admitted. ‘It’s very hard when you are not comfortable at your home.
‘I’m scared to sleep alone with my kids, for example. So for today, the most important thing for me, I think, is the security of me and my family.’
