Antonio Rüdiger is shining for Real Madrid in the biggest games against elite strikers

Antonio Rüdiger, in a time of need for Real Madrid, has stood up as one of the figures to be counted on by Carlo Ancelotti.

The image whizzed and whirred across social media: during the first half of Real Madrid’s win over Napoli in the Champions League, Napoli were counter-attacking. A dangerous, deadly prospect that saw so many sliced apart last season, but not today.

Antonio Rüdiger recovered his position in amazing fashion with a sensational sprint back in what is now his customary running style: high knees and galloping strides on his toes, he chased down the ball to the applause of the away crowd. But the humour of the image might take away the importance of him to the side, as Rüdiger cut down the 10-metre advantage that Osimhen had in just a few seconds.

Rüdiger shone against Napoli

Rüdiger left the Diego Armando Maradona stadium with impressive numbers: 42/48 accurate passes, 6/8 duels won, 3 recoveries and just 6 losses of possession. And the most important statistic of them all: he allowed Osimhen, a player who scored 31 times last season and 5 in this, absolutely nothing except a header saved by Kepa. It was the Nigerian’s only shot on target in the entire 90 minutes and the player completed just 8 passes all game in a night where he was kept in a box by the now undroppable Rüdiger; Osimhen won 4/16 duels and lost the ball 8 times.

The German started the current season well aware of the lessons of the last. Militão and Alaba had become the solid defensive pair at the back and Rüdiger knew that between injuries and rotation was where he would have to find time.

Militão’s injury has given Rüdiger a chance to shine

But the script was ripped up when Militão got injured and Madrid decided against going into the market for a late substitute. Rüdiger stepped up as the starting centre-back and along with either Alaba or Nacho, and he has made a home for himself in the back line - especially on the biggest occasions.

It is games such as the one against Napoli where Rüdiger has affirmed his status as a starter, although it is not the first time that he has done so as part of the Los Blancos squad. Last season, his most memorable performance came against Manchester City in the first leg of the semi-finals, where he silenced Haaland at the Santiago Bernabéu. The Norwegian passed completely under the radar in a game that Madrid deserved to win but in the end settled with a draw.

The second leg reinforced what we suspected: Militão returned and took Rüdiger’s place as Haaland struck gold and City washed Madrid away 4-0.

The City clash was not Rüdiger’s only good game: against Liverpool in the Round of 16 the German kept Gakpo quiet as Madrid won 2-5 at Anfield. His over-the-top style is now part of the furniture at the Bernabéu and the player defended his unique ways to AS, saying that “I have not been sent off for 5 years. People know I like to be aggressive on the pitch, but I also play as cleanly as possible.”

The Clásico is Rüdiger’s next test

Without a doubt, Rüdiger now has another huge challenge on the horizon when the Clásico comes around. Last season he played in 5 of them, although with differing results. He played just 2 minutes in the 3-1 at the Bernabéu, he did not see any minutes in the 0-4 at Camp Nou and in the other three he played the full 90, losing all of them (2-1 in the league, 0-1 in the Cup and 1-3 in the Super Cup).

Now, Lewandowski is another target for the defender, and the Polish forward is also looking to right the wrongs of previous Clásicos. The game will be played on October 28 at 12:15 p.m. ET & 9:15 a.m. PT, with the only doubt between the two Lewandowski’s fitness and whether he will actually play, given his recent injury worries.