Free at the end of his contract at Chelsea, Antonio Rüdiger represented one of the good deals of last summer, but the central defender very quickly decided to take over the management of Real Madrid.
“I was really happy at Chelsea, then Real Madrid called me to sign me and I said… wow! For me it was only Chelsea or Real“, thus told the German international this Sunday in the columns of the newspaper AS. With midfielder Aurélien Tchouameni, recruited for 80 million euros from AS Monaco, the 29-year-old rock has also embodied one of the few major reinforcements for the Merengue.
Rüdiger failed Barça
Along with his free centre-back profile, the Berlin native admits he’s also caught the eye of another La Liga cador and arch-nemesis at Casa Blanca: FC Barcelona. But the former AS Roma player swears it: the prospect of joining Catalonia never crossed his mind. “Barcelona approached me, yes. But for me it was never a possibility, I never thought of accepting Barça“, repeated the Merengue.
Antonio Rudiger: “I was really happy at Chelsea, then Real Madrid called to sign me and I said… wow! For me, it was only Chelsea or Real”, tells @diarioas. ⚪️ #Real Madrid
“Barcelona approached me, yes. But for me it was never a possibility, I never thought of accepting Barça”. pic.twitter.com/aaQClwupcI
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 13, 2022
Aligned sometimes as a central defender sometimes as a side, on the right as on the left, the German has given satisfaction since his arrival in the Spanish capital and his versatility is appreciated by his coach Carlo Ancelotti. The supporters have not forgotten either that the rookie has shown himself to be faithful to his reputation as a warrior by snatching qualification for the knockout stages of the Champions League against Shakhtar Donetsk (1-1) with an impressive kick. helmet that left his face bleeding. Between his generosity on the pitch and his remarks about Barça, the newcomer, who is about to compete in the World Cupis doing everything necessary to get adopted by the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium!