Although we joked a bit in that headline, it’s not that far from the truth. Or at all, actually.Antonio Rudiger’s name may not be on the list of the world’s most popular or most decorated players, but his importance for both Germany and Real Madrid overcomes those categories.Last season, Rudiger’s performance against Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League semi-final first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu was clinical. Some would say Erling Haaland still hasn’t found the way out of Rudiger’s pocket, as the confident centre-back made Haaland look like a non-league veteran that night. It ended 1-1, but the reverse fixture – which, for some awkward reason, saw Rudiger benched in favour of Eder Militao – turned into a proper nightmare for the Royals, as the Cityzens battered them 4-0 to reach the Instanbul finals.Rüdiger is back in 3 days to own his dog Haaland once again pic.twitter.com/Gl1APEm3q4— Bedri (@BedriRMCF) April 6, 2024 He was not injured, nor did he have any dispute with Los Blancos’ boss, Carlo Ancelotti, so this decision still puzzles many.”[The first leg] was a good game, and we stopped Haaland getting passes,” Rudiger said in the intro of tonight’s other epic battle between the two sides, only this time in the UCL quarter-final.”The coach didn’t apologise [for dropping me] and didn’t need to; I accepted it, even though it was hard to accept.”##NAJAVA_MECA_8010129##We can’t rewrite the past, but the present and future of Real Madrid in this UCL campaign depend (again) on Rudiger and his presence in the back line. This time, Ancelotti surely won’t gamble like he did last year at the Etihad.”Now, for this game, the plan is to try and control dangerous players like Phil Foden, [Kevin] de Bruyne and, of course, Haaland,” concludes the former Chelsea centre-back.On the other hand, his manager believes that Jude Bellingham’s presence will make a whole lot of difference to the last encounters with the defending champion. “He’s having a very good season in the penalty box.”Jude is physically very strong, and he’s helping us a lot in the defensive aspects and upfront to create space and provide movement.”He’s very mature. He’s only 20 years old, but he’s very professional, very serious and humble.”UCL: Bayern’s star eulogises Arteta, calling Arsenal boss a ‘leader’The Real Madrid coach wants his side to show more mental strength than they did when the two met last season.”We played without courage, without personality,” said Ancelotti. “Courage and personality are fundamental in this type of game. We lacked them in the second leg.”The important thing is to be at our best. The mental aspect is very important,” explained Carletto, avoiding the use of the word ‘revenge’, which circulates a lot these days regarding this mouthwatering tie.UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE – QUARTER-FINALSFirst legTuesday22:00: (1.80) Arsenal (3.70) Bayern (5.00)22:00: (2.85) Real Madrid (3.50) Man.City (2.55)Wednesday22:00: (1.85) Atl.Madrid (3.60) Dortmund (4.80)22:00: (2.05) PSG (3.60) Barcelona (3.80)***odds are subject to change***
