Barcelona have been in talks with the representatives of Antonio Rudiger over a proposed free transfer from Chelsea this summer, but according to Fabrizio Romano, nothing has been agreed as of yet and the Catalan club are now set to withdraw their interest in his services.
Barcelona have not made an official bid for Toni Rudiger, just direct contacts with his agents – it’s now considered unlikely as Christensen will sign for Barça and Araújo will extend his contract, 100%. 🔴 #FCB
Ronald Araújo new deal is already sealed, release clause included. pic.twitter.com/erGdwfNCcu
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) April 6, 2022
Barcelona were said to be interested in free deals for Cesar Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen, who were supposed to run out of contract at Chelsea, just like Rudiger. However, it seems they will eventually be signing only one of them – Christensen, with whom they already have an agreement in place.
Azpilicueta has made a certain number of appearances for the London Blues this summer, which has triggered an extension clause set to keep him at Stamford Bridge for another 12 months without him having anything to say about it. With the club unable to sign new players or offer extensions to others under the terms of the current sanctions, they are closed to any offers for their captain.
As for Rudiger, it appears that the proposed arrival of Christensen, along with Ronald Araujo being on the verge of signing a new contract, have made the acquisition of his services unnecessary for Barcelona. Xavi will have enough centre-backs in the squad without him.
The representatives of the 29-year-old Germany international are believed to be still in talks with Juventus and Real Madrid, after Bayern Munich ruled themselves out of the race too, but Rudiger himself is currently focusing on helping Chelsea take on Real Madrid in the Champions League quarterfinals.
Time is ticking… ⏳👀 Ready and focused on a big one 🔥💯👊🏾 #UCL #Hustle #AlwaysBelieve pic.twitter.com/zyWbyLzRBs
— Antonio Rüdiger (@ToniRuediger) April 4, 2022
