Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel confirmed on Sunday that defender Antonio Rudiger will leave at the end of the season when his contract with the English Premier League club expires.
Chelsea suffers from British government sanctions against the owner of the Russian club Roman Abramovich, after the Russian attack on Ukraine, and is no longer able to sign contracts or buy players.
Rudiger, who joined from Roma in 2017, won the FA Cup, Champions League, European League, European Super Cup and Club World Cup with Chelsea, and it was reported that he might join Real Madrid.
“The situation is that he wants to leave the club,” Tuchel told Sky Sports after Chelsea’s 1-0 win over West Ham United. He told me about this in a private conversation between us.
“Without sanctions, we would at least be able to fight, but our hands are tied,” he added. We don’t take it personally, that’s his decision. He’s an important player and will be until the end of the season, but that’s frustrating.
He continued, “We will miss him very much.” He gives courage to his fellow players, he is a top-class defender.. We will need to find another alternative.
The contract of defenders Cesar Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen with Chelsea expires at the end of this season as well.