OFFICIAL: Real Madrid confirm arrival of Antonio Rudiger on a free transfer

Antonio Rudiger has been announced as a new Real Madrid player, with the German centre-back signing a four-year deal with the European champions.

After five years with Chelsea, his contract in London is set to expire on June 30 and he'll then become a Real Madrid player on a free transfer, similar to the operation that saw David Alaba arrive from Bayern Munich last year.

This was a great market opportunity and Rudiger was also a player who Carlo Ancelotti wanted to bolster the squad, so Real Madrid pushed to make this signing happen.

As MARCA has been reporting for weeks, Rudiger was an important target for Real Madrid and one they sealed some time ago.

It now remains to be seen how he'll fit into the line-up, as he joins a squad where Eder Militao and David Alaba are the established starting centre-backs, while his arrival could also have implications for Nacho and Ferland Mendy.

The 1.90m centre-back has played 50 times for Germany and also has a Champions League title to his name, having been key to Chelsea's 2020/21 success.

He will be presented as a Real Madrid player on Monday June 20 at midday.