Chelsea told to sign Antonio Rudiger replacement after deal is agreed – pundit
Chelsea need to find replacements for Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen as soon as possible, according to Gabby Agbonlahor.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the ex-Aston Villa and England attacker claimed Thomas Tuchel needs to perform major surgery on his squad if he does not want them to go backwards in the 2022-23 season.
Chelsea confirmed on Thursday (2 June) that Rudiger, 29, had completed a move to Real Madrid on a free transfer.
His defensive partner Christensen is also out of contract this summer and looks set to leave Stamford Bridge.
Fabrizio Romano reported on Wednesday (1 June) that the 23-year-old has agreed a deal with Barcelona but it cannot be completed because of Financial Fair Play restrictions.
Meanwhile, Chelsea confirmed earlier this week (30 May) that the consortium led by Todd Boehly have finally completed their takeover of the club.
Asked what now has to happen on that field as a result of the takeover, Agbonlahor told Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley: “Tuchel’s got to really sort that squad of players.
“He needs to look at his defence to see what he can bring in to replace Rudiger and Christensen.
“There is a lot of work to do because they will find themselves a lot further down than third [if not].”
The Telegraph reported last month (25 May) that Boehly is set to hand Tuchel a £200million transfer kitty to strengthen the squad this summer.
In the 2021-22 season, the Blues finished third in the Premier League and runners up in the EFL Cup and FA Cup.
In other news, an expert has been left outraged after a ‘dangerous’ Chelsea development and asked ‘what is he playing at?’.