Chelsea announce second most expensive contract in history

After parting ways with several defensive stars, Chelsea have finally brought in centre-back Antonio Rudiger from AS Roma in a deal worth £34 million.

The German centre-back has been linked with Chelsea since last year but it was not until this summer transfer window that the Blues agreed on a transfer fee with the Serie A side.

Rudiger has signed a five-year contract with Chelsea and will inherit the number 2 shirt vacated by Branislav Ivanovic, who moved to Zenit in January.

The 24-year-old centre-back has enjoyed two successful seasons with AS Roma since leaving Stuttgart. In the 2016/17 Serie A season, Rudiger made 26 appearances, helping Roma finish second in the standings.

In fact, this player still has a contract with Roma until 2020, however, the attraction of the reigning Premier League champions is simply undeniable. Before Antonio Rudiger, Chelsea brought in goalkeeper Willy Caballero on a free transfer.

Antonio Rudiger officially joined Chelsea.

"It's a great feeling because not everyone has the chance to play for a club of this calibre," Rudiger told the club's website. "I'm looking forward to meeting my new team-mates and I'm proud to officially become a Chelsea player."

Talking about the new contract, Chelsea technical director Michael Emenalo affirmed that Rudiger has enough qualities to shine in a tough tournament like the Premier League.

"Rudiger is young but has experience playing at club and international level. He has all the qualities needed to shine in the Premier League."

With the arrival of Antonio Rudiger, coach Conte will have more quality options in defense after saying goodbye to John Terry (to Aston Villa) and Nathan Ake (to Bournemouth).

Rudiger impressed at the Confederations Cup in Russia last summer, helping Germany win the tournament after a 1-0 win over Chile in the final. The former Roma star has now made 17 appearances for his country.

With the transfer fee of 34 million pounds Chelsea had to pay Roma, Antonio Rudiger became the second most expensive contract in the history of The Blues after Fernando Torres. In addition, 34 million pounds is also the amount that the Stamford Bridge team had to pay PSG to buy back David Luiz last summer.

According to Zing