Transfer Guru Fabrizio Romano confirmed in a tweet on Monday that Real Madrid had agreed to a four-year deal with Rudiger following Thomas Tuchel’s announcement on Sunday that the defender will leave Chelsea.
However, Chelsea coach Tuchel has insisted that he expects 100 percent commitment from Antonio Rudiger as Chelsea prepares to finish the season on a good note.
Tuchel expects Rudiger to play an integral part in Chelsea’s six remaining Premier league fixtures and also help the Stamford Bridge Club avenge their EFL Cup defeat at Wembley when they meet Liverpool for the FA Cup finals on 14th May.
The announcement of the departure of Rudiger from Chelsea has been greeted with mixed feelings from the media.
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Some pundits questioned why the Chelsea Board did not do anything to keep the defender with some calling Rudiger and his agent greedy for demanding outrageous demands from Chelsea.
What did Tuchel say?
Speaking at a Press conference ahead of their premier league clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford on Thursday, he said:
‘It was a pleasure every single day with Toni and I’m a bit concerned that we talked a bit too much in the past about it because we still have not reached all the goals that we have for this season.
‘There are still things to achieve, big things, and he is still a big part of this club and we still demand 100% of him and this is where the focus is.
‘And then from pre-season next season, as I’ve said, life will go on whether we like it or not, whether we are happy about it or not.
‘And then from pre-season next season, we will give our very best and I will be fully involved with all my heart and all my knowledge, for sure.’
When asked if he believes Chelsea will still be competitive next season without Rudiger, Thomas Tuchel said:‘Yes, and in the end that’s my job.
‘No matter how the situation will be solved, and when it will be solved, and how things will be settled in the end, and how active we can be in the transfer market – can we react? And in which frame can we react?
‘At the end, we will dig in and we will try to squeeze out everything from the squad that we have.
‘And hopefully, and I know myself, I will fall in love with the squad that I have them and try to push the squad to the limit.’
Thomas Tuchel claims he wished he had two Recce James in the Chelsea squad.
Thomas Tuchel has praised the versatility of the England international and has insisted that he would love two Reece James in the Chelsea setup.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Tuchel said: ‘I would love to have two of Reece James, that would solve the problem, it’s like 50% towards wing-back and 45% towards the back three.
‘It depends a little bit on how the opponent plays against us. Do we expect a lot of possession, how is their structure for their offensive transition?
‘For this, it can sometimes be helpful for Reece to play in the back three and be the first guy to cover in the transition and not be involved in the attack. We have his speed and physicality as the protection against the opponent’s counter-attack.
‘I’m a bit more into that his very best position is the wing-back position where he is perhaps even more decisive, more useful but it is more demanding.
‘The next step is to be a regular player over 50, 55, 60 matches and from there we have to decide that those positions are filled with top quality with him.’
