Antonio Rudiger, former Chelsea defender, and current Los Blancos star has scored a draw against his previous club following an emphatic win over Liverpool. The Spanish super giants have progressed to the quarter-final after their victory scoreline of 5-2 at Anfield and the second leg 1-0 at the Bernabeu.
On the road, the record 14 times winners initially fell short of 2 quick goals from Nunez and Salah but then went on to score 5 unanswered goals at Anfield. The winners of the first leg kept a clean sheet at home, with Rudiger an integral part of the defense.
Karim Benzema got the only goal of the game that night. On the opposite end, The Blues’ confirmed their spot in the last-16 after a hard-fought win over Borussia Dortmund with an aggregate of 2-1 in their favor.
The draw for the quarterfinals of the tournament took place on Saturday in Nyon, Switzerland, amidst much excitement and anticipation. The most successful European giant was drawn against their old rivals Chelsea once again. They will have now faced the London side in the Champions League knockout stages three iterations in a row.
Real Madrid came out on top last year and went on to become the winners. In a similar fashion, Chelsea beat Real Madrid in 2021 on a 3-1 aggregate and eventually became the champions.
Why is Antonio Rudiger so eager to face Chelsea?
The German professional is excited to face his former club for the first time since his departure on a free transfer in 2022. Real Madrid had taken the opportunity to rope the free agent after the rumors of the Blue’s unwillingness to keep him spread.
Before moving to Spain on a permanent deal, the 30-year-old defender won his first-ever UEFA Champions League after Chelsea beat Manchester City 1–0 in the final at the Estádio do Dragão in 2021.
Rudiger began his career at VfB Stuttgart, representing their reserves in 3. Liga and the first team in the Bundesliga. In 2015 he joined Roma, initially on loan and a year later for a €9 million fee. Rudiger moved to Chelsea from Roma in an initial €29 million deal in 2017. He was at the club for 5 years, winning the Champions League, Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup, and also the FA Cup.
After joining the 14-time Champions League winners for free, the star center-back has already started winning trophies for the Madrid side, winning the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. The draw getting confirmed, Rudiger took to Twitter to post a message to his former teammates. He said, “This will be very special – Can’t wait to see so many friends again.”
This will be very special – Can't wait to see so many friends again 🙌🏾 @ChelseaFC #UCLdraw #Hustle #AlwaysBelieve
— Antonio Rüdiger (@ToniRuediger) March 17, 2023
Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois, who is currently with Madrid, will also be facing their former club in the upcoming fixture alongside Rudiger.
What do you think? Who will come out on top? Real Madrid or Chelsea? Comment down below.
