ANTONIO RUDIGER has branded Luis Suarez a ‘pain in the a***’.
But the Chelsea star admits it will be a ‘joy’ to face the Atletico Madrid ace again in tonight’s Champions League clash.
The Blues won the first leg of the last-16 tie 1-0 thanks to a brilliant bicycle kick from Olivier Giroud.
The crucial away goal has put Thomas Tuchel’s men in the driving seat to reach the quarters.
But Atletico aren’t top of LaLiga for no reason.
Diego Simeone’s men remain one of the best sides in the competition.
And spearheading their charge towards silverware is former Liverpool ace Suarez.
The striker, 34, has netted 18 goals in all competitions this term.
And Chelsea defender Rudiger will need to be at his best to contain Suarez once again when they collide at Stamford Bridge.
Rudiger won the battle in the first leg as Suarez failed to find a way past Chelsea’s back line.
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However, he did manage to get under Rudiger’s skin after PINCHING the German’s thigh following a scuffle for the ball.
Rudiger was enraged at the time as match officials missed the incident.
And the ex-Roma man has now described Suarez as a ‘pain in the a***’ to defend against.
However, Rudiger concedes the hitman is still one of the best in the business, and it will be a ‘joy’ to go up against him yet again.
Rudiger told BT Sport: “He’s a tough player to come up against but personally I like these types of challenges because this guy is a pain in the a*** – excuse my words.
“But he’s a world class player and to battle against a man like him is a joy, it’s why I play football.
“What happens on the football pitch happens and it was not crazy like people try to make out.
“But at the end of the day he has emotions and so do I, he’s eager to go and me too, so you can fight for 90 minutes but when the game is finished you shake hands.
“You don’t need to like each other but you give each other respect and that’s it.”
BT Sport is the only place to watch every UEFA Champions League match exclusively live, including Chelsea v Atletico Madrid live on BT Sport 2 from 7pm tonight. For more info go to bt.com/sport
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
