Antonio Rudiger admits he was hit by Thomas Tuchel 's Chelsea sacking after working with him for 18 months.
The German was shown the door at Stamford Bridge earlier this season, just months after Todd Boehly had taken charge of the club. Tuchel was Roman Abramovich's final appointment in west London and helped transform the team on the pitch after replacing Frank Lampard.
Rudiger became a leading light under Tuchel as the Blues turned their 2020/21 season around. They reached the FA Cup final, coming up short at Wembley, as well as a further two domestic cup finals the following season. During that period the centre-half's contract was winding down and he ultimately opted to leave the club.
Tuchel was forced to replace the German international, who moved to Real Madrid on a free. Rudiger contacted his former boss when he was axed back in September and concedes he felt it emotionally.
He told the Guardian : "It hit me. What he achieved in the club, even if it was under the old regime, it was a shock. He gets players that he wants and then all of a sudden he’s gone. But it’s Chelsea. It’s also somehow not a surprise. I messaged him and said: ‘Thank you very much for everything you did.’ Not only for me but for all of us. Without him winning the Champions League was a bit far away."
Rudiger's contract talks had rumbled on, but the final nail in the coffin was when the Blues were prohibited from handing out new deals after being sanctioned by the British Government. That was due to Abramovich's alleged ties to Vladimir Putin. However it was Tuchel who had to front the media, and drew praise for how he handled himself.
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"All the questions that came up, the way he handled himself, I think you couldn’t have done it better," added Rudiger. "He took a lot of pressure from a lot of people away. Not only us players. You heard a lot from him. I think it was a very tiring situation for him. You have to focus on your job as a manager and then you have all these political questions you have to answer. He was unbelievable."
Tuchel remains without a job as he weighs up his next move. He has enjoyed roles at leading European sides of late, taking charge at Borussia Dortmund and PSG previously. Bayer Leverkusen reportedly offered Tuchel a route back to management, but he turned down the opportunity.
Chelsea are now adapting to life under Graham Potter, who they got from Brighton, whilst Rudiger has settled in with Champions League winners Los Blancos as they look to retain domestic and European honours.
