When Chelsea Football Club made it official that Defender Antonio Rudiger had joined their squad, it was done so in an incredibly clever way. At this link, you can watch the video which at first glance appears to be nothing more than a run-of-the-mill merchandise advertisement.
Rudiger, who came over from AS Roma, unexpectedly shows up at the end. In the German’s more traditional club unveiling, he gave some reasons for why he left the Italian capital city for the British capital.
Obviously, we know 34 million reasons why he moved, right off the bat, but Rudiger pointed to a bunch of other factors that influenced his decision.
Rudiger said: “Not to be disrespectful, but when you speak about Roma and Chelsea, Chelsea is a big club. Roma is a big club too, in Italy, but I think Chelsea is a different level.”
No one would really dispute that claim. While getting to live a hero’s life in the eternal city is no doubt a special experience few ever achieve, the chance to make it at a football club that’s among the biggest and best brands in the sporting universe is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The biggest reason of all though, for Rudiger, is his new boss.
“Of course, for me the biggest reason was the coach, Antonio Conte,” he said.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network and News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV.
Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, Sound Cloud, LinkedIn and YouTube.