Former England captain John Terry has revealed the surprise foreign player he wished could play as part of Thomas Tuchel's squad.
Ahead of the World Cup qualifiers, Tuchel named his first England squad last week, with several surprise players making the cut for the matches against Albania and Latvia.
Notable players such as James Maddison, Jack Grealish and Conor Gallagher missed out, while former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and Chelsea star Reece James were brought back into the fold.
It remains to be seen exactly which stars will stand out in Tuchel's system, but former England captain Terry has picked out one foreign player who he thinks would excel for England had he been eligible.
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The likes of Gareth Bale, Erling Haaland and Jamal Musiala could all have decided to represent to England, but Terry named a completely different player when speaking to SPORTbible about his dream pick for Tuchel's XI.
“There’s a lot of good players but I’m going to go with Rudiger actually," the former England star told SPORTbible while promoting the upcoming Club World Cup with DAZN.
"He’s strong, quick and can chip in with the odd goal here and there.
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“He’s one player who I look at who just loves defending and loves playing against the top players, he thrives on it. He’s a top top player.”
Rudiger spent four seasons at Chelsea, making over 200 appearances as he played an key role in winning the 2020/21 Champions League and the 2022 Club World Cup.
He then joined current club Real Madrid, where he has continued to impress, making 143 appearances and adding another eight trophies to his career total, including last season's Champions League.
The centre-back made his debut for national side Germany back in 2014 when he was just 21 years old and has gone on to represent his country 77 times in competitions like the European Championships and the World Cup.
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Antonino Rudiger's history with Thomas Tuchel
With the 32-year-old making 79 appearances under Tuchel, Rudiger would comfortably slot into the left side of England's defence, despite impressive performances from Crystal Palace star Marc Guehi recently.
Speaking to Goal last year about his former manager, the German international said: "I've definitely had a lot of good coaches.
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"If I had to choose one now, it would be Thomas Tuchel. I got on particularly well with him. His honest manner simply suited me. Also, when I look at his tactical understanding: Wow!
After a lacklustre start to his time at Chelsea under Frank Lampard, Rudiger established himself as one of the best defenders in the Premier League under Tuchel, keeping a remarkable 14 clean sheets in his first 21 appearances under the new boss.
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Topics: Thomas Tuchel, Real Madrid, John Terry, England, Football, Antonio Rudiger
Ben McCrum