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New Real Madrid signing Antonio Rudiger has revealed that he rejected an offer from Barcelona. The German was a free agent this summer after his contract at Chelsea expired at the end of last season.
Los Blancos swooped in quickly to seal the defender's signature and have unveiled him as a player today. The former AS Roma star moves to Spain after spending five seasons in England.
Speaking at his unveiling today in Madrid, Rudiger claimed he had offers from other clubs too. However, he rejected the offers, including that of Barcelona, because he wanted to join Real Madrid. He told a news conference (via SportsMax):
"The first time I spoke with Ancelotti was in April and that contact was very important, that's when I decided to play for this club. Other people have contacted me but I was convinced of what I wanted. Of course, there was an offer from Barcelona. But I told my brother [and agent] it's Real or nothing."
Rudiger added that Carlo Ancelotti played a big role in his decision to sign for the club and said:
"Ancelotti told me that he wanted me at Real Madrid and that he trusted me and that he would depend on me. That's enough for me. It's Madrid and you can't guarantee anything but I'm ready to fight to play."
Antonio Rudiger on leaving Chelsea for Real Madrid
Antonio Rudiger admitted earlier this year that he would have loved to stay at Chelsea. However, he did not feel important enough after the Premier League side took time to restart contract talks.
In a column for the Players' Tribune, he wrote:
"Unfortunately, my contract negotiations had already started to get difficult last fall. Business is business, but when you don't hear any news from the club from August to January, the situation becomes complicated. After the first offer, there was a long gap of just nothing. We're not robots, you know?"
"You cannot wait for months with so much uncertainty about your future. Obviously, no one saw the sanctions coming, but in the end, other big clubs were showing interest, and I had to make a decision. I will leave it at that."
Rudiger moves to Real Madrid on a free transfer after winning the Champions League, Europa League and the FA Cup during his time at Chelsea.
