Three ex-Chelsea players are set to return to Stamford Bridge in the second leg of their Champions League quarter final.
One of them is making his first trip back to London.Antonio Rudiger, who was left Chelsea on a free to join to their opponents in the most recent summer window, is amongst those returning to familiar territory.
Travelling back to West London with him are teammates Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois, who both enjoyed long spells with the Blues.
This will be the third time in three seasons Courtois has played at Stamford Bridge in the Galacticos’ goal since he was sold in the summer of 2018. Hazard made the trip with his fellow Belgian in 2021 in a 2-0 defeat, but last season did not make the squad after suffering a leg injury.
For Rudiger, this is his first European jaunt with the Spanish side he joined less than 12 months ago, and he can expect to see lots of action as Frank Lampard’s side have a two goal deficit to contend with. From a man of the match performance in the Champions League final, to questions over fitness during the winter World Cup, here is how the ex-Chelsea stars have fared since moving to Madrid.
Antonio Rudiger
After joining from Roma and spending five years in Chelsea, Rudiger made the decision to return to warmer horizons on the continent when his contract ran out last summer.
Chelsea wanted to keep their Champions League winning centre-back, but the then 29-year-old made the decision to “experience something new”.
“My decision came to the point, to be honest, in March. I'm 29 and I decided to experience something new. Most important was to give everything to the club that was in my power. Some people will not be happy. I can fully understand it.”
Since first stepping foot on the grass of the Bernabeu, the German international has seldom left. Rudiger has played the fourth most minutes of any outfield player for Los Blancos this season, and contributed a goal in the early stages of September in a 4-1 thumping of RCD Mallorca. He admitted to being “surprised” with how quickly he adapted to life in Spain.
“I don’t have to play every game because we have a large squad with a lot of quality,” said Rudiger before October’s Champions League clash with RB Leipzig. “I feel I’m a 10 out of 10. I’m surprised at how quickly I’ve adapted. I had the help of Kroos and Alaba. I’m very happy. As I said in my presentation, I’m going to give 100% for this club.”
More recently, speaking to Marca, Rudiger told of the “positive” pressure bestowed upon you when playing for the flagship team in the Spanish capital.
He said: “In Madrid you have pressure even when you get in the car to go to [training]. But I say that as a positive, because I like to have that kind of pressure in my life, I wouldn’t want to live without it. Madrid is not for any player and I try to be there. I want to spend a great time here.”
Thibaut Courtois
Courtois’ 2018 sale to Real Madrid was not the first time that Chelsea had done business with a side in the Spanish capital after a successful loan stint at Atlético between 2011 and 2014.
Los Blancos were eager to bring him back to Madrid and fronted a fee believed to be in the region of £35 million to make it a reality. For the Belgian, he had just finished a Premier League campaign where he kept 16 clean sheets and won the Golden Glove - an accolade he would repeat in that summer’s World Cup after a string of strong performances.
That was not all he grabbed headlines for, though. Following the end of the 2017-18 domestic campaign, Courtois spoke publicly about wanting to live nearer to his children in Madrid. His comments reignited rumours that had been following him about a transfer to Real Madrid.
After the World Cup, his choice was finalised as he expressed his interest in moving on to pastures new. When Chelsea refused until they signed a replacement, Courtois stopped turning up for training with the hopes of forcing a move.
August 8 rolled around, and Courtois’ was officially a Real Madrid player on a six-year-deal.Courtois traded the English capital for the Spanish in a tough time in his life. He had just broken up with his girlfriend, and his children had moved back to Madrid - where he followed and rediscovered his “happy” place.
“I am very happy,” he told CNN “since my first year in Madrid it has always been like a second home. I also met the mother of my children there. When we broke up, she want back to Madrid. So when I had the chance to play for Real Madrid, and go back to Madrid to be closer to my kids it was amazing for me. I am really happy, I enjoy living in Madrid.”
And the fans in Madrid will equally be pleased to have the esteemed shot-stopper protecting their goal and not that of their opposition tonight.
Similarly to Rudiger, Courtois is a Champions League winner. However, it is with the Galacticos that the goalkeeper lifted the trophy. The Belgian played every single minute of Real Madrid’s 2021-22 conquest to win the competition for a record 14th time, and kept a clean sheet in the final - earning man of the match for his multiple world class saves.
Courtois’ nine saves is the most recorded by Opta in a Champions League final, while his 59 across the competition has also never been topped. With two additional league titles also under his belt, becoming the first player since 1954 to win the competition with both Atlético and Real Madrid.
The winter World Cup saw Courtois make his 100th appearance for his nation, but one of his fellow countrymen grabbed the headlines during the competition for a different reason…
Eden Hazard
Hazard’s physique was questioned by a reporter in November, but it is not the first time since he left the boys in blue that he has been critiqued for his weight.
When reporting for Madrid training in 2020, the Belgian returned five kilograms overweight but remained adamant he can lose weight as quickly as he puts it on.
“It’s true, if I am on holiday then I am on holiday,” he said at the time. Following a loss to Morocco a few months ago, in which Hazard failed to make any sort of impact, an Arabic reporter asked him: “We noticed that you have gained weight. How are you dealing with this and what caused it?”. A stunned Hazard responded by saying it was "not true".
"My weight has remained stable," he added. "I always work hard on my fitness.”
Hard work or not it is undeniable that the winger has seen his stock fall dramatically since Los Blancos splashed £115 million on him in July 2019. Injury issues and poor form have left the Belgian starved of minutes - and the emergence of Vinicius Junior has certainly has not helped either.
In truth, his career has nosedived since setting off from Cobham for Valdebebas, but his Real resume is impressive nonetheless in terms of honours won.
2019-20, La Liga winner. But Hazard made just 16 appearances after picking up a November knock, suffering an ankle injury at the hands of fellow countrymen Thomas Meunier in the Champions League.
On Halloween of 2020 a horror stat for Hazard. His goal in a 4-1 win over Huesca was his first in over a year, and his first Champions League followed on November 25 in his ninth appearance in the competition for his new side.
2021-22 and an in form Real Madrid winger was earning the praise of his manager, but it was not Hazard. Vinicius Junior scored three in the first two games of the season to stake his claim for a first team spot - leaving Hazard on the sidelines.
And it was from the sidelines that Hazard watched Courtois’ man of the match performance in last season’s Champions League final as an unused substitute - but he still has the honour of a winners' medal in his collection.
So, contrasting spells in Madrid. One Belgian who still has a point to prove, and another who has become a stalwart of his new side. Don’t forget a certain German making his first return to a stadium he called home last season.
