Chelsea Icon Ron Chopper Harris admits the Blues will find it difficult to replace both Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen in the summer.
Antonio Rudiger joined Real Madrid on a free transfer after running down his contract at Chelsea. As one of the key players in the Chelsea setup under Thomas Tuchel, his departure is seen as a big blow by the Chelsea fans and the coach.
Thomas Tuchel had admitted that the Blues will find it difficult to replace big personality Antonio Rudiger at Chelsea. Chelsea midfielder Jorginho in an interview with Sky sports also admitted that the entire Chelsea locker room will miss Germain
Andreas Christensen also left as a free agent after spending 10 years at Chelsea. Barcelona announced on Monday that they have signed The Danish international on a free transfer.
Chelsea has lined up several players as the replacement for Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen. The likes of Nathan Ake, Matthijs de Light, and Jules kounde have emerged as the possible replacement for the departed duo.
The Blues have opened talks with Manchester City for the potential transfer of Nathan Ake for £45 million. The former Chelsea academy graduate can play as a left-back, Centre back, and defensive midfielder.
Chelsea saw their initial £34 million bid plus Timo Werner rejected by Juventus. Juventus has placed an £85 million price tag on the Dutch international. There are reports that Chelsea is preparing to submit an improved bid to Juventus this week.
However, Ron Chopper Harris still believes his former side will have a tough time replacing Rudiger and Christensen.
What did Ron Chopper Harris say?
In an interview with talk SPORTS, The Chelsea legend said: “I think they’ve lost two good players in Christensen and Rudiger. I think they will be difficult to replace.
“Whether they’ve got defenders lined up or some youngsters that are going to come through that are going to get regular football [I don’t know].
“I think we will know after the first half a dozen games the way the season will go and we’ll keep our fingers crossed that maybe they’ve got one or two players lined up. I think they most probably need maybe a couple of players to replace the players that have just left.
“I hope with the manager that’s there at the moment, he’s got a say in picking and choosing the players he wants and I hope the club backs him.
“I think there is such a big gap between the top half a dozen sides and the middle of the roadsides.
“Money doesn’t buy success in football but, it does help if you’ve got a chairman or an owner that’s backing you and you can go and pay millions of pounds for players and pay the wages that these fellas demand today.
“I don’t think they [Chelsea] will be far away from winning some major competitions next season.”
Thomas Tuchel returned for pre-season on Monday as the team prepare for their pre-season tour in the US.
