Juventus are reportedly one of four European supergiants to open talks with Chelsea defender and impending free agent Antonio Rudiger.
Rudiger has emerged as one of the Premier League’s best defenders since the arrival of Thomas Tuchel at Stamford Bridge last January. The impulsive and aggressive German has thrived as part of a back three after years of indifference in west London, and he’s now been courted by some of Europe’s best.
The defender is out of contract at Chelsea at the end of the season and he rebuffed the Blues’ latest contract offer as he would’ve made only half of what the club’s top earners make.
Antonio Rudiger is free to talk to clubs as his contract at Chelsea runs down
The Blues are slowly resigning to the fact that they’ll lose Rudiger in the summer, and they’re struggling to tie down fellow impressive defender Andreas Christensen to a long-term extension. They did, however, extend the timeless Thiago Silva for another year on Monday.
Regarding Rudiger, his entourage have been proactive in discussing a potential transfer with several top European clubs this summer. According to Sky Sports, Juventus are one of four clubs to have opened talks with Rudiger’s representatives over a pre-contract agreement this month.
Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain are the others, while Manchester United also hold an interest.
Incredibly unlikely that Juventus pull this off
Juventus will be in the market for a centre-back in the summer (if they can’t bring Merih Demiral back) and Rudiger would be a brilliant option for the Bianconeri. While he’s struggled somewhat as part of a back four, his development under Tuchel over the past year has been remarkable.
At 28, the German is in his prime and Juve could tie him down for five years to serve alongside Matthijs de Ligt in defence.
However, it’s incredibly unlikely that the Bianconeri are able to pull this one off. From a financial perspective, Rudiger’s demands immediately make any deal difficult and considering the wealth of their current competitors for the German’s signature, you have to say that Juve are a huge underdog in this race.
You never know, though!