Real Madrid have been handed a boost ahead of their summer recruitment drive.
After signing David Alaba on a free transfer last summer from Bayern Munich, Florentino Perez is once again trying to pry away a central defender from a European rival. In this case, German Antonio Rudiger.
The 29-year-old’s contract was expiring at the end of the season and despite Chelsea’s best efforts, they have failed to hold onto him, as Tuchel told Simon Johnson.
“The situation is that he wants to leave the club. He informed me of this is in a private talk. We gave everything – me and the club – but we could not fight anymore because of the actions.”
Rudiger played against Real Madrid in the Champions League recently and despite being part of a Chelsea team that conceded five goals across two legs, was largely impressive.
This would represent an interesting acquisition for Real Madrid’s backline. With Eder Militao and Alaba ruling the roost currently, if the formation stays the same then a Rudiger arrival would mean one of the three would sit on the bench. Alternatively, Alaba could squeeze out Ferland Mendy at left-back.