Thomas Tuchel Disclosed That Contract Discussions With Antonio Rudiger Were Not Looking Good.
Thursday, 28 April -
After five excellent years with Chelsea, Antonio Rudiger is set to join Real Madrid on a free transfer, and Thomas Tuchel confesses that he is "disappointed" to lose the defender.
Thomas Tuchel remembered the tense moment Antonio Rudiger knocked on his door at Chelsea's training field as he prepared to leave the club after a five-year stay.
Rudiger's likely departure for Real Madrid is just one of the Blues' several issues since their Premier League championship aspirations began to wane.
The commotion surrounding Roman Abramovich contributed to the Russian owner's decision to sell up after Romelu Lukaku's disruptive interview in which he indicated he would return to play for Inter Milan.
Tuchel's latest worry has been the future of one of the Premier League's most trustworthy defenders, after dropping out of the Champions League despite beating Real Madrid 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu.
In a new update, the German coach discusses the moment he realized Rudiger would quit the club.
"It's not a good indication when Toni comes to your door one hour before training," he remarked.
"Normally, he doesn't knock; instead, he takes you in the middle of the conversation and says something, so everyone was concerned.
After that, we had a little discussion. First and foremost, I was grateful that he came to inform me.
I was one of the first, which indicates that we have a relationship in which we deal with problems frankly and honestly, and are not scared to tell one another how we feel."
Despite the fact that he was about to leave West London, Rudiger received high praise from his countrymen.
Tuchel stated that Rudiger is "not the man you need to take out to 10 dinners and 12 coffees to convince him into anything" and that the two are on "excellent terms" now that he has made up his mind.
"He has strong opinions, which is part of his mentality," the Blues manager remarked.
He expects transparency and honesty, yet he's a low-maintenance guy.
"Rudiger will be difficult to replace, and Chelsea's other trustworthy centre-back, Thiago Silva, is 37 years old – but you never know with Thiago Silva."
Trevoh Chalobah, a Chelsea academy product, may be ready to move up and become a regular.
However, according to La Razon, the Blues may be willing to pay £50 million to sign Pau Torres from Villarreal.
On Wednesday, the Spaniard did an admirable job of keeping Liverpool quiet until a Pervis Estupinan own goal let the floodgates open – and he was a key figure in the Yellow Submarine's quarter-final victory over Bayern Munich.
However, Tuchel said that the loss of Antonio Rudiger was not ideal.
"I was disappointed, but not on a personal level.
It is within his rights to determine what opportunities he had and to move teams.
I didn't like it, and he knew we didn't like it, but we've had key players out for weeks or months before, and life goes on."
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