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Could Manchester City hijack Chelsea’s £35 million move for this German international?
On Saturday evening, it seemed that Antonio Rudiger was only days away from sealing a £35 million move from Roma to Chelsea. However, the report that Manchester City are preparing a late bid to hijack the move and bring the German international to the north of England with an ambitious offer.
Pep Guardiola and co. have already missed out on one of their top summer transfer targets to the Blues this summer as Monaco midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko awaits confirmation of a move to London, and they’re determined not to do so again.
Chelsea will certainly make a strong case for being his future destination. Having won the Premier League comfortably in 2016/17 and with heavy investment expected this summer, they will be contenders once again domestically but also on the European stage. That could prove to be an attractive proposition for a player who has never reached the final stages of such a competition or won a league title.
On a less positive note for Blues fans, the idea of working with Pep Guardiola is thought to appeal to Rudiger, who is desperate for a move to the Premier League. Given his impressive skills on the ball, not only in terms of footwork and control, but also with his passing and vision, it is easy to see why.
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There is also the prospect that Rudiger can imagine himself becoming a regular at the Etihad much more easily than at Stamford Bridge. It would be a very difficult task for Antonio Conte to drop Cesar Azpilicueta, David Luiz or Gary Cahill after their form last season, as the likes of John Terry, Nathan Ake and Kurt Zouma found out. As such, the 24-year-old may prefer the less enviable challenge of displacing either of City’s error prone centre-backs in Nicolas Otamendi or John Stones.
All things considered, Manchester City could pose a real threat to Chelsea in their efforts to seal a deal for the German. The defender is reportedly on holiday from next weekend and will decide his future after Sunday’s Confederations Cup final against Chile, but he faces a tough decision. Chelsea may be hoping that the fact that they moved earlier for his services may prove to be enough to convince the Serie A star.
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