It’s sometimes easy to forget that assessing a player’s suitability for a club goes both ways.
The clubs tend to have the power when it comes to contracts as they decide if a player is good enough to play while also being a good fit for the squad, but this is the opposite example.
Antonio Rudiger has found himself in and out of the Chelsea side over the past couple of years, but there’s no doubt that he can be a top quality defender when he’s on form.
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A report from The Athletic has indicated that Chelsea want to offer him a new deal as he’s set to be out of contract in the summer of 2022, but he’s looking to delay those talks for now.
There’s no sign of him being unhappy at the club, but it’s suggested that he’s seen how quickly he can fall out of favour in the past and he wants to spend more time under Thomas Tuchel before committing himself to the club.
It makes complete sense as the 28 year old is about to enter his final prime years, so the last thing he needs is to be tied to a club where he’s wasting those by sitting in the stands.
Everything still points to him staying and it will seem inevitable if he continues to start on a regular basis, but it’s something to look out for if he starts to find himself out of the team again.