Player Profile: Antonio Rudiger

Depending on who you ask, Antonio Rudiger is either a top-class defender or an utterly liability at the back. A very impressive defender, his unique physicality and defensive rigour and ensures he’s often a player who can be seen playing with his heart on his sleeve. While defensive mistakes and losses of concentration occur more than they should, at 24 there’s ample time for him to improve and find a greater consistency in his game.

Starting out at Borussia Dortmund, he failed to make the breakthrough there and soon moved on to VfB Stuttgart. At Stuttgart, he quickly broke into the first-team and in 4 years completed close to 100 appearances. Before long, his fantastic form seen him pick up attention from abroad and in 2015 he left Stuttart for a move to Rome. At Roma, he quickly became an important part of their squad ad played over 60 games in a two-year stay in the Italian capital.

While he suffered at times from defensive lapses in Italy, and left a sour taste on his time with the Giallorossi following a sending off in a 3-1 home defeat to Lazio in the Derby della Capitale, he was a very impressive defender for much of his time.

His move to Chelsea came in 2017, when the German defender made his move over to London for around €40m. The signing was seen as the beginning of a Chelsea rebirth, with Rudiger impressing early on into his Chelsea career with some assured performances.

With an impressive debut campaign close to an end, Rudiger could easily set the standard for the rest of his career in the next coupe seasons. A hugely powerful defender with excellent pace and tackling capability, extra concentration and experience could see him evolve into a top-class defender,