‘I’d be absolutely delighted’ – Antonio Rudiger backs Real Madrid move for Bundesliga star

‘I’d be absolutely delighted’ – Antonio Rudiger backs Real Madrid move for Bundesliga star Ever since his arrival at Real Madrid, Antonio Rudiger has been one of the leaders of the Merengue team. This is not only the case in the dressing room, but also on the pitch, where his experience, mentality, and commitment to the team are clearly visible in every game. His importance in the dressing room is going to increase even more next year, as the whites have already lost two other leaders at the end of the last season, i.e., Dani Carvajal and David Alaba. He presence at Real Madrid for the next season is already guaranteed as his one-year renewal was officially announced two days ago. Currently, he is playing for Germany in the World Cup, and as MARCA has reported, he addressed a presser in which he also talked about several aspects of his club career. The center-back talked about the arrival of Jose Mourinho on the bench, and expressed his excitement on finally being able to play under him: “I can’t say too much, but I can say that I’m extremely excited. At last, I’m going to get the chance to play under him. In the past, there were many conversations with him, but for one reason or another it never happened. That’s why I’m even happier now to welcome him to our team.” The defender also opened up on his struggles with physical problems during the last season: “I had a difficult year last season, especially physically. I had to fight through a lot of injuries and managed to come back. Madrid is practically my home. I feel very comfortable there, and so does my family, which is why I never really thought about anything else. I just wanted to get fit again and earn my new contract. And I did.” Furthermore, he also made it clear that he never thought about leaving the club: “Madrid is my home; I never thought about leaving.” When asked about Nico Schlotterbeck , Rudiger was clearly excited to have him at Real Madrid: “First of all, good players are always welcome. I can’t really say much more than that. I’d be absolutely delighted.” “Especially on offensive set pieces, he was always a danger to the opposition. In one-on-one duels he was very intense and fully focused. And with Nico, you also have to highlight his excellent distribution from the back. Honestly, his left foot is pure gold. You have to give him credit for that.” “I don’t know much about the situation, but I’d be absolutely delighted if Schlotterbeck signed for Real Madrid.” Despite the last two seasons going trophyless, the German was confident that the Merengue team has enough decisive players to win the biggest trophies: “The last two years at Real Madrid have been tough. We haven’t been successful. But if you look at the profile of players we have there, players like Kylian Mbappé, Jude Bellingham, or Vinícius are exactly the kind of footballers who step up when you need decisive players in the biggest moments.” If Real Madrid ultimately end up signing Nico Schlotterbeck, he can form a very good defensive pairing with his compatriot Antonio Rudiger in the backline. Thus, it is easy to understand why the latter would be happy with his arrival, in addition to the Borussia Dortmund center-back’s other virtues that he highlighted in this presser. However, with the likes of Dean Huijsen, Eder Militao, Ibrahima Konate, and Raul Asencio all being available for center-back duties, it would be very difficult to predict which two players would start for Jose Mourinho next season.