One of the latest casualties of Frank Lampard’s revolution at Stamford Bridge appears to be Antonio Rüdiger.
Publicly used to attract both Kai Havertz and Timo Werner to the club, the centre-back is now being pushed to one side by the Blues, and an exit before the end of the window is looking likely.
A move to Barcelona was immediately dismissed by the Spanish press, and it appears he might have more luck with a return to Italy, where he spent two years with AS Roma before his big move to Chelsea.
And it’s that very same Italian club who are being linked with him as they struggle to find an agreement with Manchester United for the transfer of Chris Smalling.
ForzaRoma.info brought a story on Wednesday evening revealing Rüdiger ‘is leaving’ Chelsea, who ‘would like to send the German defender on loan to a team that is not a direct rival, therefore outside the Premier League’.
Rüdiger is now one of those, and while a return to AS Roma wouldn’t be a ‘step forward’ for the player, Lampard isn’t counting on him and a fight for a place in his squad would be futile for the German.
That’s why a return to Trigoria ‘could be the right place’ for him to spend his season, and while his salary is high, it isn’t ‘insurmountable’.
Chelsea would be willing to do another Zappacosta-style deal, allowing Paulo Fonseca’s team to ‘fill a role currently uncovered without having to go crazy’.
It’s certainly an option, but ForzaRoma make it clear there are currently ‘no negotiations in progress’ and it’s ‘just an idea’ for the time being.
However, as they say, ‘the next few days can become something more’.
