Antonio Rudiger says he would not have left Chelsea for any other club but Real Madrid – and admits the La Liga giants first contacted him about a move to the Santiago Bernabeu early into the 2021/22 campaign.
After the arrival of Thomas Tuchel at Stamford Bridge in January 2021, he blossomed into one of the finest defenders in European football. He played a key role as the Blues went on to win the Champions League with a victory over Manchester City in the final in Porto.
After that triumph, Chelsea held talks with Rudiger's representatives over a new contract for the centre-back, whose deal expired this summer. However, those did not progress, and from the start of January, the German international was free to agree to a pre-contract move to another European club.
