Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen to Leave Chelsea This Summer

1606

Back in the summer of 2021, it became apparent both Antonio Rüdiger and Andreas Christensen could be leaving Chelsea for free the following year. There was little advancement on their contract talks despite the fact they only had one year remaining on their current deal.

Fast forward to the present day and with the financial situation Chelsea now find themselves in, there is no chance either player is going to put pen to paper on a new deal.

The first thing to note is both players are going to be a big loss to Chelsea next season. Antonio Rüdiger has been fantastic under the guidance of Thomas Tuchel and has helped the club to the Champions League title and the possibility of an FA Cup victory in the final this season.

The German international has been influential at both ends of the pitch the European champions tried their best to keep Rüdiger at the club.

Rüdiger joined Chelsea from AS Roma in July 2017 for £22.5 million. If all goes well until the end of this season, the German will have played over 200 times for Chelsea, racking up well over 17,000 minutes on the pitch for The Blues.

At the time of writing, Rüdiger has contributed 12 goals for Chelsea and created 7 goals for teammates. Four of those 7 assists have come this season and Rüdiger has been happy to take the ball forward from the back, often driving into the opponents half of the field before shooting or passing.

However, it is his presence at the back that will be missed. He has become more vocal during his time at Chelsea and an example to follow on the pitch, always giving 100% and fighting for the cause.

The rumour is of a move to Real Madrid but Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Juventus, and Paris Saint-Germain have all shown an interest. Manchester United are also thought to be keen but it is Real Madrid who are leading the race for Rüdiger’s signature.

Andreas Christensen has been at Chelsea since 2013 and only recently has he become a key man in the defensive unit.

At the time of writing, the Dane has played 33 times for Chelsea this season and featured in 27 matches during the 2020/21 campaign plus 28 matches in 2019/20. However, prior to the 2019/20 season, Christensen was mostly used in cup competitions and had a spell on loan at Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Despite being only 26 years of age, Christensen seems to have been at Stamford Bridge for a long time and only in the past three seasons has he become a key player at the back.

However, some recent performances, especially against Arsenal in the Premier League and Real Madrid in the Champions League has left Chelsea fans wondering if he is the right man to take them forward.

There has long been links with a move to Barcelona and that could be about to come true this summer.

The pair will leave a gaping hole at the heart of the Chelsea defence and Tuchel and the new owners will have a job on their hands to replace Rüdiger and Christensen. Thiago Silva, Malang Sarr and, Trevoh Chalobah could be the only remaining central defenders at the club.

The sale of Fikayo Tomori, Marc Guéhi, and Kurt Zouma last summer is beginning to look like poor planning and Chelsea will have to make a move in the transfer market. p