Antonio Rudiger left OUT of Chelsea squad for Premier League clash against title rivals Liverpool leaving his future at Stamford Bridge in doubt
- Antonio Rudiger has been left out of Chelsea’s squad to face rivals Liverpool
- Frank Lampard is looking to cut down his squad before the transfer deadline
- The Blues boss has spent £200million this summer on new additions to his team
- Rudiger is believed to have helped Timo Werner and Kai Havertz join the club
Antonio Rudiger has not been included in today’s squad to face Liverpool – throwing his Chelsea future into doubt.
The Germany international is fully fit but manager Frank Lampard has not included the central defender in his plans to face the Premier League champions.
Rudiger was an unused substitute in the victory over Brighton on Monday night.
Antonio Rudiger has been left out of the Chelsea squad for their match against Liverpool
The decision throws into question Rudiger’s position in Lampard’s plans for the rest of the season.
And with the transfer deadline due to close on October 5, Rudiger could become the subject of interest from rival clubs.
Rudiger has two years left on his contract, but Chelsea – as of yet – have not tried to renegotiate an extension.
Kurt Zouma and Andreas Christensen played in the heart of Chelsea’s defence at Brighton and Frank Lampard also now has Thiago Silva available to him.
Rudiger (left) was left out of the match day squad by Frank Lampard (right) despite being fit
Rudiger reportedly helped persuade Timo Werner to join the Blues as the Premier League side pulled off a major coup in the transfer market.
The RB Leipzig star agreed a deal to join the west London club in a £53million move, seeing off strong contenders Liverpool in landing the 24-year-old.
Rudiger and Werner have a strong friendship, having played in the youth set up for Germany as well as coming through together at Stuttgart.
Rudiger is also believed to have helped the Blues sign Kai Havertz who joined the Chelsea this summer from Bayer Leverkusen in a £89m move and made his debut in the west Londoners’ 3-1 win over Brighton last Monday.