Former Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger has gone viral on social media after repeating a trick that he became known for at Stamford Bridge.
The German defender sealed a free transfer to Real Madrid earlier this summer, having seen his contract in West London come to an end. He has featured three times for Los Blancos, making a brief cameo against Eintracht Frankfurt as the Spaniards lifted the UEFA Super Cup, before starting their first La Liga match of the season against Almeria.
It was his most recent outing that saw him garner plenty of attention on social media, however. With the reigning Spanish champions taking on Celta Vigo, Rudiger was initially named on the bench but, with the side 4-1 up, he was handed an opportunity off the bench.
During the 85th minute of the game, he was pictured sprinting forward towards the halfway line before exchanging passes with Karim Benzema and Fede Valverde.
The German international was not finished there and elected to sprint down the right flank, where he was picked out by a delicious through-ball. Reaching the penalty area, he fed Benzema and aimed to get on the end of the Frenchman’s flick.
Rudiger set his sights for goal, only to see his shot charged down, leaving the commentator at the time chuckling during the live broadcast.
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The 29-year-old will certainly be keen to end his wait for his first Real Madrid strike having garnered a reputation as a goalscoring centre-back during his stint with Chelsea. He scored five goals in all during his final season at Stamford Bridge, three of those coming in the Premier League.
He even scored against new side Real Madrid last term as Chelsea staged an impressive Champions League quarter-final comeback at the Santiago Bernabeu having lost the first leg at home. The Spanish side eventually reached the last four after extra-time and went on to win the title against the Blues’ Premier League rivals Liverpool.
Rudiger will hope to have another opportunity to impress Real boss Carlo Ancelotti in the next La Liga outing against Espanyol.
Whilst the German has enjoyed life at the Santiago Bernabeu thus far, Chelsea are yet to find his direct replacement. They did sign Kalidou Koulibaly - who was sent off against Leeds on Sunday - from Napoli and continue to chase the signing of Leicester star Wesley Fofana. The Frenchman was left out of the side that lost to Southampton on Saturday.
Tuchel will be keen for more defensive recruits after seeing his side turn in a disastrous showing at Elland Road. The Blues found themselves 2-0 down at the break in Yorkshire as Brendan Aaronson and Rodrigo found the net for Leeds - the first goal came after a howler from goalkeeper Edouard Mendy. Jack Harrison then made the scoreline even worse for Chelsea after the break.
