FORMER Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger has opened up about his struggles under Frank Lampard at Chelsea.
The German defender played for the Blues between 2017 and 2022, making 203 appearances for the club.
He then left the side to join Real Madrid on a free transfer in the summer of 2022.
Despite being seen as Chelsea’s best centre-back by the time he left, Rudiger lost his spot in the Chelsea side under Frank Lampard, who has managed the club for two separate spells now.
Lampard’s first stint in charge coincided with Rudiger’s time at the club and during that time, the German international found himself behind Kurt Zouma and Andreas Christensen in the pecking order.
Speaking on the matter, Rudiger said: “To be honest, I still can’t say exactly what happened back then. That’s part of football.
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“Maybe he [Lampard] had other ideas or saw other players better. But the good thing about football is that the answer is on the pitch and I think I gave the perfect one.
“Nothing like that has ever happened in my career. I even played under Lampard again at the end of his tenure. Let me put it this way: if it doesn’t fit at some point, then it doesn’t fit anymore. But no footballer in this world loses on purpose.
“I really wanted to leave. I wanted to leave. I wanted to join Paris Saint-Germain, that was my wish.”
The defender was desperate to play for Thomas Tuchel in Paris, who he describes as an “honest manager”.
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As fate would have it, Tuchel would be the man that replaced Lampard in West London in January 2021.
His reign at the Blues was a remarkable success, with the German manager guiding Chelsea to a Champions League triumph that season.
He also led Chelsea to a Club World Cup the following season, Rudiger’s final one at the club.
But the German tactician is having a less successful time of it at Bayern Munich since taking over this time last year.
He was dismissed from his role last week following a run of three straight defeats, although he will continue to manage the side until the end of the season.
The manager will no doubt be grateful for Rudiger’s praise during a season that has been full of bad PR.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
