Following sanctions that were imposed on Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich by the UK Government, defender Antonio Rudiger looks increasingly likely to leave the club on a free transfer at the end of this season.
Manchester United are interested in signing Rudiger, with i nterim boss Ralf Rangnick known to be a big fan of the defender. Despite the potential wage demand, which are likely to be substantial, the German defender has established himself as one of the best defenders in world football in the 18 months since Thomas Tuchel arrived at Stamford Bridge, and could add more quality to the Reds' squad.
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United haven't got a good defensive record compared to the teams around them in the Premier League table, with Rangnick's side conceding 38 goals in just 28 league games so far this season, some 20 goals more than both Chelsea and Manchester City.
So, if Rudiger was to make the move to United in the summer, what sort of impact could he have on Rangnick's side? Could the German defender help United improve defensively and win a trophy?
We simulated the 2022/23 season with Rudiger in the United squad and this is what happened.
We 'signed' Antonio Rudiger for United in July 2022
To set up this simulation, we used the Football Manager 2022 editor to arrange for Rudiger to join United at the start of the summer transfer window, using FM22 to run the simulation.
We also released Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Edinson Cavani, Juan Mata, Tahith Chong and Lee Grant at the beginning of the season with these players all out of contract in the summer of 2022, and Mauricio Pochettinho was hired as manager in the simulation for the 2022/23 season.
This is how Rudiger's in-game profile looks on FM22.
Described by the media as a commanding centre back, Rudiger has a very strong profile on FM22, with his strength (18), tackling (17) and aggression (17) his best attributes. Let's see how Rudiger performed throughout the 2022/23 season at Manchester United on FM22.
Rudiger played 48 games across all competitions for United as he quickly became a regular in the defence, grabbing three goals and one assist during those games. Across all competitions, he averaged a rating of 7.21 per game, a very impressive level of performance.
The 28-year-old had a 95% pass completion rate from an attempted 3,436 passes, also making zero mistakes leading to a goal, whilst he also won 31 of the 48 games he played in for United.
Based on the average rating alone, Varane was the best performing centre-back at United in the 2022/23 season, with his rating per game 0.5 higher than Rudiger. but, the German international made the most appearances out of the four centre backs at the club whilst grabbing the most goals and player of the match awards, proving to be Pochettino's most reliable central defender.
At the end of the 2022/23 season, Football Manager 2022 put together an overall best Man United XI, based on performances, statistics and other metrics. This is what United's best XI looked like at the end of the 2022/23 season as predicted by Football Manager 2022:
Full United best XI (4-3-3): De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Rudiger; Fernandes, Ndidi, McTominay; Sancho, Ronaldo, Rashford.
Fellow new signing Wilfred Ndidi started in front of Rudiger in the best XI after arriving from Leicester City for £48 million in the summer transfer window.
Rudiger was partnered by Raphael Varane, meaning Harry Maguire dropped to the bench and saw limited minutes on the pitch in the simulation.
So, how did United perform in the league and cup competitions after signing the 28-year-old in the summer transfer window?
United's results from the 2022/23 simulation:
United finished fourth in the Premier League table, grabbing 76 points over the course of the season, but it was a very close between fourth and second.
After going unbeaten until December, United lost six games in January and February alone, but Pochettino's side finished just three points behind second-placed Chelsea whilst Liverpool ran away with the league table.
The addition of Rudiger did see a big defensive improvement though, with United conceding just 33 goals in 38 games. To put into context, United have already conceded 34 goals this season with 11 games remaining.
After earning a top-four finish in the league, United found success in the domestic cup competitions with Rudiger in their side, winning both the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup.
After a 1-1 draw in normal time, Marcus Rashford scored the winning goal in extra time to hand United the FA Cup trophy against Aston Villa.
Scott McTominay scored the only goal of the Carabao Cup final in the 84th minute as United beat Leicester 1-0, and a 3-2 loss on aggregate to Man City saw United exit the Champions League in the quarter-finals. Rudiger started both games.
Overall, our Football Manager 2022 simulation suggests that if United were to sign Rudiger in the summer, the German could improve United's defence in a partnership with Raphael Varane, and in his first season at the club, the German could play a major role in United winning two trophies.
But this simulation also suggests that whilst Rudiger would improve United's defensive unit, the club still have work to do if they are to challenge the likes of Liverpool when it comes to challenging for the Premier League title, with both the midfield and attacking units also needing extra quality.
Would you like to see Antonio Rudiger sign for Man United? Let us know in the comments below.
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