Why Tottenham should consider swooping for Antonio Rudiger
According to Express (h/t Football.london), Tottenham are one of the clubs to be interested in Antonio Rudiger. The £100k-a-week Chelsea man has been on the fringes this season and has only featured in a handful of games. He has admitted that his situation is not great but wants to fight for his place in the side.
Profile
Antonio Rudiger shot to prominence with VfB Stuttgart in Germany and went on to enjoy a productive spell at AS Roma in Italy before completing a move to Chelsea back in the summer of 2017. The 27-year-old had been one of the mainstays of the Blues’ backline over the past three seasons, featuring 120 times across all competitions.
However, the German has slipped drastically down the pecking order under Frank Lampard this season, having not featured in any of Chelsea’s first six games in all competitions before the international break. Rudiger remained an unused substitute on the bench in Chelsea’s 3-1 win over Brighton on the opening day of the campaign.
A full international for Germany since 2014, Rudiger has accumulated 37 caps for his nation, winning the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup with Die Mannschaft while also featuring at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Rudiger would be a smart coup for Tottenham
Tottenham enjoyed a successful summer window, with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Matt Doherty, Joe Hart, Sergio Reguilon, Gareth Bale, and Carlos Vinicius all coming through the door at North London. The Lilywhites managed to add some much-needed depth and quality to several areas of their squad but the lack of depth at the heart of the defence remains a pressing concern for Mourinho.
Jan Vertonghen’s departure on a free transfer followed by the loan exit of Juan Foyth has rendered Tottenham short of cover in the centre-back department. Mourinho has rotated the likes of Toby Alderweireld, Davinson Sanchez, Ben Davies and Eric Dier to good effect so far.
To put things into perspective, Tottenham reigniting interest in Antonio Rudiger in January would go a long way towards solving a nagging issue. The German international has far too much quality to be gathering dust at Chelsea. Spurs should once again try to convince him to switch boats if his situation doesn’t change.
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Rudiger has already established himself as a quality defender in the Premier League and it goes without saying that Tottenham would have a readymade replacement for Vertonghen on their hands if they manage to get a deal over the line for the German.