Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has revealed that key centre-back Antonio Rudiger has missed out on their home tie with Arsenal through injury, with the German defender touch and go for the next London derby against West Ham.
Rudiger was nowhere to be seen when the Chelsea line up was announced, leading to speculation as to why he missed out. Fellow centre-back Thiago Silva was also omitted from the starting XI, but was listed among the substitutes.
Your Chelsea team news tonight! ?#CheArs pic.twitter.com/q5y8IKHLiA
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 20, 2022
And Tuchel was quick to allay concerns about Rudiger, telling Sky Sports that he picked up an injury during the 2-0 FA Cup semi-final win against Crystal Palace at the weekend.
‘It is groin pain a little, minor injury. I hope, and the doctors told me today is unfortunately too soon, but he will be close for the West Ham game’, the Chelsea boss said.
Rudiger’s final Chelsea games?
The end of this season could prove to be the final games of Rudiger’s Chelsea career, with the centre-backs contract running out this summer and there having been no headway in new negotiations.
Meanwhile the uncertainty around the new Chelsea owners following Roman Abramovich’s sanctions means that no new contracts can be discussed while that remains unclear.
“Antonio Rudiger is still waiting to discuss with new Chelsea owners before making a decision on his future.”
– @FabrizioRomano on @podcastherewego pic.twitter.com/XIlFBaoAaJ
— Simon Phillips (@siphillipssport) April 20, 2022
This has left the German in limbo, with Real Madrid, Barcelona and even Manchester United linked with adding him to their sides on a free transfer upon leaving Chelsea. It would be a sad end to the career of the German in west London, who has been one of the best defenders in the English top-flight since Thomas Tuchel took over.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Liverpool FC | 32 | 61 | 76 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 31 | 52 | 74 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 30 | 41 | 62 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 32 | 18 | 57 |
| 5 | Arsenal FC | 31 | 8 | 54 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 33 | 4 | 54 |
| 7 | West Ham United | 33 | 9 | 52 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 32 | 5 | 49 |
| 9 | Leicester City | 30 | -4 | 40 |
| 10 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 32 | -8 | 40 |
| 11 | Brentford FC | 33 | -8 | 39 |
| 12 | Southampton FC | 32 | -14 | 39 |
| 13 | Crystal Palace | 31 | 3 | 37 |
| 14 | Newcastle United | 32 | -19 | 37 |
| 15 | Aston Villa | 31 | -4 | 36 |
| 16 | Leeds United | 32 | -30 | 33 |
| 17 | Everton FC | 30 | -19 | 28 |
| 18 | Burnley FC | 31 | -19 | 25 |
| 19 | Watford FC | 32 | -32 | 22 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 32 | -44 | 21 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 22 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 17 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 15 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 15 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 14 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 12 |
| Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 12 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 11 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 11 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 11 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 10 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 10 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 10 |
| Pukki, Teemu | Norwich City | 10 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 10 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 10 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 10 |
| Smith-Rowe, Emile | Arsenal FC | 10 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 9 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 9 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 10 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 9 |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 9 |
| Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 9 |
| Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 9 |
| Mctominay, Scott | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 9 |
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 7 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 7 |
| Moreno, Rodrigo | Leeds United | 0 | 8 |
| Cash, Matty | Aston Villa | 0 | 8 |
| McGinn, John | Aston Villa | 0 | 8 |
| Rice, Declan | West Ham United | 0 | 8 |
| Bednarek, Jan | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 8 |
| Shaw, Luke | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
| Romeu, Oriol | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 7 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 12 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 12 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 9 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 9 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 9 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 8 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City | 7 |
| Mbeumo, Bryan | Brentford FC | 7 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 7 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 7 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 6 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 6 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 6 |
| Maddison, James | Leicester City | 6 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 6 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 6 |
| Kulusevski, Dejan | Tottenham Hotspur | 6 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 5 |
