German star defender Antonio Rudiger has completed his move to Spanish La Liga side Real Madrid from Chelsea on a free transfer, signing a four-year deal. According to the club, they said they will publicly unveil to fans the player on 20 June. The former AS Roma defender has joined the new Spanish and European champions Real Madrid after rejecting Chelsea’s attempts to extend his contract.
Real Madrid to Unveil Rudiger on the 20th of June
29-year-old Antonio Rudiger moved to Chelsea for an initial fee of £29m from AS Roma in 2017. He made 203 appearances and scored 12 goals for the Blues, winning the FA Cup, Champions League, Europa League, Uefa Super Cup and Club World Cup.
Chelsea described him “as one of the most passionate characters to represent the club in recent memory”. Rudiger, who also spoke to Bayern Munich, was offered a contract worth more than £200,000 to stay at Chelsea. “We gave everything and now we enter a situation where we can’t fight anymore because of the sanctions and now Toni will leave,” Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel said in April.
Tuchel was referring to the restrictions on the club resulting from the UK government’s sanctioning of former owner Roman Abramovich in March, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Abramovich has denied the government’s assertion that he has strong links to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Roman Abramovich put the club up for sale and a consortium led by American investor Todd Boehly. Chelsea is set to lose Danish centre-back, Andreas Christensen, this summer to Barca on a free transfer but the club’s captain Cesar Azpilicueta is expected to stay after a one-year extension was triggered in his contract earlier this season.
