Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger confirmed his exit on Friday, however, he insisted that he leaves the Premier League giants with no grudges.
Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger has finally confirmed that he's going to leave the Premier League giants on a free transfer to join Real Madrid. The German centre-back however insisted that he leaves the club with no grudges, however, a lack of communication over his new deal led to his exit.
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel said in April that the defender would leave when his contract expires. The German international, 29, is set to join LaLiga champions Real Madrid on a four-year deal.
Sanctions imposed by the British government on Chelsea's Russian owner Roman Abramovich following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine meant that the club cannot sign new players or renew existing contracts.
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"My contract negotiations had already started to get difficult last fall," Rudiger wrote in The Players' Tribune on Friday.
"Business is business, but when you don't hear any news from the club from August to January, the situation becomes complicated.
"After the first offer, there was a long gap of just nothing. We're not robots, you know? You cannot wait for months with so much uncertainty about your future.
"Obviously, no one saw the sanctions coming, but in the end, other big clubs were showing interest, and I had to make a decision. I will leave it at that, because business aside, I have nothing bad to say about this club."
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Rudiger had joined Chelsea from AS Roma in 2017 and had since become a key player for the club amassing a total of 200 appearances for the Blues.
He won the FA Cup, Champions League, Europa League, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup during his time in London.
With inputs from Reuters
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