Rudiger to Real Madrid: Five defenders who could replace Chelsea star

James Shearman

• 3 Jun 2022 15:50 BST
• 4 min read

Antonio Rudiger was a colossus for Chelsea for 18 months, but the Germany international defender has confirmed his intent to move to Real Madrid when his contract expires on 30 June.

Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has known the move has been coming for months. Indeed, this is likely just the first of several key players to leave the Blues' defence, with Andreas Christensen set for Barcelona. Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso could also leave.

Unsurprisingly, Chelsea are scouring the market for players to draft in as the club's new owners face a major recruitment test just weeks after arriving.

Here are five players who are in contention to replace Rudiger.

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Jules Kounde

The first and most obvious option for Chelsea is Sevilla's Jules Kounde. A deal for the Frenchman was almost done over the summer of 2021, when he seemed destined to arrive at Stamford Bridge until the Spanish side suddenly increased their asking price at the final hurdle.

That prevented a move from being completed, but reports have confirmed Chelsea remain keen on Kounde, and have kept a close eye on his form for Sevilla.

Capable of playing right-back as well as centre-back, Kounde is versatile and would ideally suit a wide centre-back role in Tuchel's system.

The only potential problem is that he's always played on the right, especially in a back three, so switching to the left, where Rudiger plays and has made his own, may be slightly difficult.

However, Kounde has the quality to adapt, and his driving runs forward certainly have shades of Rudiger about them. He's also less rash, although Rudiger's aggression would be missed if Kounde is signed.

Matthijs de Ligt

Matthijs de Ligt has been linked with a move to the Premier League ever since breaking through at Ajax, and now a switch to Chelsea is on the cards.

Reports have suggested the Dutchman is open to a move for months, and the late Mino Raiola, who was his agent, confirmed those rumours.

Juventus paid £67 million to sign De Ligt from Ajax in 2019, so will be keen on recouping that fee with any sale.

Chelsea will therefore need to be prepared to splash the cash on someone who has rarely ever played in a back three, let alone on the left-hand side of one.

De Ligt doesn't seem the ideal candidate for a Rudiger replacement.

Alessandro Bastoni

Like Nico Schlotterbeck, who was linked to Chelsea before opting for Borussia Dortmund, Alessandro Bastoni is also left-footed, which would help to play Rudiger's role on the left.

Similar too, he is an excellent ball-carrier from deep, and pairs that with the distribution to match.

Unlike the Freiburg man, however, Bastoni will be hard to get out of Inter, with his contract not expiring until 2024, and Inter not in a position where they need to sell.

Benoit Badiashile

Monaco defender Benoit Badiashile is wanted by two unnamed Premier League clubs, one of which is thought to be Newcastle, but it would be logical if Chelsea was the other team interested in the promising centre-back.

He has a similar profile to Rudiger, albeit he is a left-footed version. Indeed, there would be many upsides to this move, described in more detail here, but it could be hard to get Monaco to sell given they are set to receive a huge windfall from Aurelien Tchouameni's expected €100 million move to Real Madrid.

Marquinhos

Paris Saint-Germain captain Marquinhos is another name on Chelsea's radar. The Brazilian took the armband in Paris once Thiago Silva departed for west London, and has stepped up ever since.

He's been one of their top performers over the past two years, so the club will be desperate to keep him.

The 27-year-old's contract doesn't expire until 2024, and he has been in talks over a new deal, so Chelsea would need to pay above and beyond a fair price for him.