Chelsea: Who will win the race for Antonio Rudiger?

Just last month, reports began to circulate concerning one of Chelsea’s most reliable center backs, Antonio Rudiger.

Per many reports, it has become public knowledge that Rudiger is refusing to sign a contract extension with the Blues, his current contract with the club expires at the end of the season.

If a new agreement cannot be reached, Rudiger will be able to leave Chelsea this summer, as well as agree on pre-contract terms with another club starting January 1st.

The reigning European Champions would be keen to not let this be the case, however, the German defender has apparently asked the club for a salary of £200,000 per week ($265,000) in order to sign a new deal. So far, Chelsea has deemed Rudiger’s wage demand to be too high.

Such has caused Rudiger, along with his brother-and-agent, Sahr Senesie, to entertain interest from other clubs, to which there have been plenty.

Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Manchester United, and even PSG have all been linked so far to the defender, with Real Madrid being the rumored favorites.

Antonio Rudiger Has Options if He Leaves Chelsea

Things got a little more interesting this week as new reports surfaced that Chelsea owner, Roman Abramovich, was not happy to hear that Real Madrid are the current frontrunners to bag Antonio Rudiger this summer.

Supposedly, there has already been an informal agreement between Rudiger and the Spanish club, which has caused Abramovich to, out of spite, seriously reconsider negotiating a deal with Real for the return of Eden Hazard.

Manchester United have also been mentioned in the running as having an interest in Rudiger. United are one of the few clubs who would possibly be willing to meet the player’s salary demands, and a new center back for the Red Devils might just be what the club needs in order to create some competition for their current struggling defense.

But Rudiger has apparently also suggested he’s keen to leave England, which then leaves the options of Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain as potential landing spots. Bayern could also possibly afford Rudiger, but do they really need him on their roster?

As for PSG, we have all seen that the French club have no qualms with their finances and showed the world last summer how genius they are at signing the best free agents on the market.

So which team do you think Antonio Rudiger will find himself representing once the 2021/22 season is over?

Does he make the move to sunny Spain, head on north to Manchester, or do you think he’ll stay at Chelsea as a last-minute surprise?

All we can tell for now is that the January transfer window will be sure to keep things interesting.