Chelsea signed Rudiger in 2017 from AS Roma
Speaking to 888 Sport (h/t Express), former Chelsea defender Mario Melchiot believes the club should build their team around Antonio Rudiger.
The German centre-back who joined the club in 2017 has made just 18 appearances for the club this season. A major factor for this has been a groin injury that has kept him out for 18 games. (h/t Transfermarkt)
In spite of the Blues starting off their summer transfer business with a bang, Melchjiot believes the team’s lynchpin is already at the club.
“Rudiger has experience and has played at a great international level.”
It is clear that Melchiot rates the German very highly. The 27-year-old is also a regular for Germany, for whom he has won 30 caps.
He praised Rudiger for his ability to go straight back into the lineup upon his return from injury.
“The next step now is to build a side around him but it’s important to find a centre-back partner who is not like him.”
Melchiot also believes Chelsea need to pair Rudiger with a player who has different attributes to get the best of them.
The Blues have tried a number of different options at centre-back this season. The likes of Kurt Zouma, Andreas Christensen and Fikayo Tomori have all been used with varying success.
The club’s inability to keep clean sheets have been a major source of concern. A number of strong performances have failed to yield the desired result owing to our defensive drawbacks.
It is imperative that we strengthen at the back. It will also reduce the pressure on our attack in tight games.
Rudiger is the most dependable of our centre-backs. Building the team around him is not a bad idea.
Partnering him alongside another reliable choice will deeply strengthen the core of our team as we look to close the gap at the top.
A strong team can win us games, but a strong rearguard can win us championships. Frank Lampard will be well aware of it.
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