Rudiger joins Real Madrid
LONDON - Real Madrid have signed Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger on a free transfer.
The Germany international, 29, has agreed a four-year contract at the Bernabeu, and will join when his deal at the Premier League club expires on June 30. A Chelsea statement said: “Chelsea thanks Toni for his contribution to our success over the last five years and wishes him well in his future career.”
Rudiger, who will be presented as a Madrid player on July 20, spent five seasons at Chelsea - winning the FA Cup in 2018, the Europa League in 2019 and the Champions League in 2021 - but rejected the club’s offer of a contract extension.
Madrid were impressed by the centre-back’s performances in their Champions League quarterfinal tie in April, when Rudiger scored in a 3-2 second leg win at the Bernabeu which saw Chelsea eliminated 5-4 on aggregate. The LaLiga club had been contacted by the defender’s representatives earlier in the season, but ruled out a move at that point due to the likely costs involved.
Their position changed after the Champions League second leg, and a deal was concluded swiftly, with Rudiger’s desire to play for Madrid and a drop in his wage demands viewed as key.
Rudiger’s signing is the second time in successive seasons that Madrid have taken advantage of the availability of a top-level defender on a free transfer, after signing David Alaba from Bayern Munich last year. His arrival will see Rudiger, Alaba and Eder Militao compete to be Madrid’s first-choice centre-back pairing, although the versatile Alaba could also switch to left-back.
Rudiger played for Stuttgart in the Bundesliga before joining Roma in 2015. Two years later, Chelsea signed him for a fee of €35 million. He became one of Europe’s most highly-rated central defenders under Coach Thomas Tuchel, starting in Chelsea’s 1-0 Champions League final win over Manchester City in May 2021.