"This is what football means to people" - Rio Ferdinand claims Chelsea superstar could regret post-match reaction after UCL clash against Real Madrid

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand believes Antonio Rudiger will 'regret' the remarks he made after Chelsea's Champions League exit. Real Madrid qualified for the semifinals of the European tournament after eliminating the Premier League giants in a nail-biting second leg.

The Blues lost the first leg of the quarterfinals 3-1 at Stamford Bridge as Karim Benzema scored his second hat-trick of the UCL season. However, Thomas Tuchel's side made a brilliant comeback in the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeau, scoring three goals without reply to take the lead.

But a late strike by Rodrygo and an extra-time goal by Karim Benzema broke the defending champions' hearts. Antonio Rudiger could not hide his frustration after the defeat, pushing David Alaba after the full-time whistle. Ferdinand believes that Rudiger couldn't control his rage after the game but he will certainly realize his mistakes later.

Speaking to BT Sport over Rudiger's outburst after the game, Ferdinand said:

"It’s emotional, man. And I don’t think he’d necessarily want to react like that or see those pictures, but the feeling there, you can’t control it. We’ve all been there after big games, I’ve said and done things that you regret, you think: “that’s not me, that’s not my normal personality”. But this is what football means to people."

The former England defender said that emotions might have gotten the better of Rudiger. He added:

"If you see changing rooms after games… imagine that changing room there. There will be things going flying," Ferdinand continued. "I hit walls, I ended up kicking people at times!

"I got done at Chelsea kicking someone by accident, you don’t mean it you just lose your head, you don’t mean anything by it. But I like to see that because that’s the emotion, there’s a care and a desire to win and they know what it means and how close they were."

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Former player Cesc Fabregas believes Chelsea are 'blessed' to have Thomas Tuchel as manager

Former player Cesc Fabregas believes Chelsea are blessed to have Thomas Tuchel as their manager despite crashing out of the Champions League.

The German tactician led the Blues to Champions League glory in 2021 and has turned them into a potent force in the EPL.

Tuchel's side currently hold third spot in the Premier League table behind Manchester City and Liverpool.

Praising Thomas Tuchel, Fabregas said in his Twitter post:

''Whatever happens. @ChelseaFC are blessed with Thomas Tuchel. What a manager.''