Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger has claimed that Manchester City ‘were not dangerous’ in their Tuesday Champions League semifinal encounter.
After the break, Kevin De Bruyne equalized Vinicius Junior’s first-half goal with a strike of comparable quality, however, replays indicate the goal should not have counted because the ball left the field earlier in the build-up.
Before Vinicius broke the scoreless tie, Manchester City controlled the majority of the possession in the first half.
City’s miraculous goal, though, came against the flow of play in a tense second half, giving Pep Guardiola’s team a point at Madrid’s home.
However, Rudiger claimed in a post-game interview with beIN Sports that Real Madrid did not only did enough to win the game but also did an exceptional job of neutralizing Manchester City’s key threats.
According to Rudiger, he believed Real Madrid can finalize the spoil at Etihad Stadium when they battle with City in the second leg.
He said: “Manchester City scored pretty late, so we believe we could have scored more, but it doesn’t matter; the match is still on, and we can travel to Manchester with confidence.”
“They weren’t particularly dangerous, in the end. We anticipated this would happen, but despite their wealth of possessions, they posed no threat.”
Meanwhile, Rudiger tightly marked Erling Haaland with his well-known wind-up techniques and kept the Norwegian striker quiet for the majority of the evening.
Rudiger was then questioned about his level of confidence going into the second leg at the Etihad Stadium next week Wednesday, May 17.
He responded: “We are Real Madrid, and we are always confident.”
Rudiger tightly marked Erling Haaland with his well-known wind-up techniques
For Antonio Rudiger, the match against Manchester City was crucial.
In the most significant game of the season, Rudiger put on his greatest performance of the year, leaving Haaland with no room to breathe.
Antonio Rudiger used some iconic tactics to mark Haaland, and the former Chelsea star’s step-up interventions were fantastic in every game.
Erling Haaland’s performance against Real Madrid was limited to 21 touches, three shots, and zero goals thanks to Rudiger’s maneuvering.
When the former Chelsea’s veteran defender is in his element, he poses a threat. He has previously reached this point and beyond while playing for Chelsea.
Recall that in last season at the Bernabeu, when Chelsea came within one slip of winning the title against Real Madrid, the German put up a great performance against Benzema, who was at the moment the world’s most transcendent and unstoppable player, aside from one mistake in extra time.
Rudiger needed this performance just as much as Real Madrid did when they travel to Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City in the Champions League match on Wednesday, May 17.
Who is Antonio Rudiger?
German professional footballer Antonio Rüdiger plays for Real Madrid and the German national team as a center-back.
Often cited as one of the top defenders in the world, Rüdiger is admired for his keen sense of timing and ability to neutralize the threat posed by dangerous attacking players.
His Playing style
Rüdiger, who typically plays center back, is a flexible defender who can also play as a full-back on either flanks.
In 2015, ESPN praised him as an “interesting prospect” who “has all the necessary physical attributes to become a top-level center-back,” calling him a “tall, quick and athletic defender who is comfortable with the ball.
Additionally, he is referred to in his Chelsea profile as a “tough tackler” and a “commanding presence in the air.”
He is renowned for his leadership skills and passing prowess in addition to his powerful physical attributes and aggressive playing style.
Antonio Rudiger’s Club Career
At VfB Stuttgart, Rüdiger started his career by playing for both the first team and the reserves in the Bundesliga and 3 Liga.
He joined Roma in 2015, first on loan and then for a €9 million fee a year later.
He moved to Chelsea in 2017 for an estimated £27 million, where he won the FA Cup in his debut season before going on to win the UEFA Europa League, UEFA Champions League, and UEFA Super Cup in the following three seasons.
Thereafter, Rüdiger joined the reigning European Champions Real Madrid in 2022.
He signed a four-year contract with Real Madrid on June 2, 2022, with the start of the 2022–23 season.
This season, he has played in 38 games for Real Madrid, scoring two goals while providing no assists.
Rudiger has participated in 306 games in his club career, scoring 17 goals and assisting on 4 others.
International career
In May 2014, he made his debut for Germany abroad. Due to an injury sustained earlier in the season, he was forced to miss the UEFA Euro 2016 but was a member of the team that won the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup.
In addition, he represented his country at the UEFA Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup, and he kept his spot in the squad for the 2018 World Cup.
Rudiger had participated in 57 games for Germany overall, with two goals and three assists.
His Salary at Real Madrid
Although Real Madrid have not made the player’s wage public, the Daily Mail reports that it will be higher than the £230,000-per-week he received at Stamford Bridge.
Nevertheless, reports have it that Rudiger turned down other clubs’ offers reportedly worth around $300,000 just to play for Real Madrid.
Currently, he only makes $100,000 a week, according to Daily Mail.
The German international will reportedly earn around 9 million euros (US$9.6 million) net per season, plus signing bonus of 8 million euros (US$8.5 million) and additional commissions totaling 15 million euros (US$16 million), according to Spanish tabloids.
