Antonio Rüdiger has lost his role as the defensive leader for the German national team. Recently, injuries, scandals, and subpar performances in the national jersey have dominated headlines. With the World Cup approaching, time is rapidly running out for him.
When fit, Antonio Rüdiger typically counts among the undisputed starters for the German national team. This has generally been the case in recent years, both under Hansi Flick and current national coach Julian Nagelsmann. However, this scenario might change for the upcoming summer World Cup.
Nico Schlotterbeck of Borussia Dortmund and Jonathan Tah of FC Bayern Munich have long since surpassed him in the central defense pecking order. A series of injuries, a long list of controversies, and weak performances for the DFB team have recently defined Rüdiger’s situation. Pressure on the 33-year-old is mounting, making the current international break immensely important for him.
Rüdiger’s most recent appearance in a German national team jersey dates back to September 7th, in a 3-1 victory against Northern Ireland. Just days before, the Berlin-born player had delivered arguably his weakest performance out of 81 international matches in the embarrassing 0-2 defeat to Slovakia during World Cup qualification. The Real Madrid star was significantly involved in both conceded goals. Alongside the unfortunate Nnamdi Collins, he was among the worst performers and simply unworthy of being a DFB defensive leader.
This performance likely stuck in Nagelsmann’s mind, as the national coach seems to have already identified a different center-back pairing for the World Cup. In his extensive interview with Kicker in early March, he hinted that he particularly favored the combination of Schlotterbeck and Tah: «I think they’ve done very well and are also very stable in the league. Jona had a complex adjustment period at Bayern, but since then he’s been very stable. And Schlotti is, as I’ve already said, an extremely important player for us.»
Schlotterbeck benefits from his unique position in the DFB squad in this regard, as Nagelsmann himself emphasized: «He is currently our only left-footed player, and we’ve already had huge problems in buildup play when he hasn’t played.» This means Rüdiger is essentially competing only with Tah for a starting spot at the World Cup – and Tah, after all, is a key figure and top performer for one of Europe’s currently best teams.
Nagelsmann did praise Rüdiger for his one-on-one abilities and his effectiveness in tight spaces: «He’s exceptionally good there, a really good tackler.» At the same time, however, he made it clear that he needs a fully fit Rüdiger: «Antonio has to be 100 percent fit and healthy. If he has niggles, which he sometimes had with us, he doesn’t reach his performance limit, and that makes no sense. But he’s on a good path there.»
Rüdiger underscored this point with a stellar performance in the Champions League round of 16 against Manchester City. In the first leg, he once again took on his «favorite opponent» Erling Haaland, who ultimately failed to record a single shot.
In the past, Rüdiger also held the role of defensive leader in the national team. However, Nagelsmann is currently unwilling to guarantee this: «It’s not set in stone and depends heavily on his performance.» Nagelsmann stated he is far from «always naming this classic defensive leader; it’s a matter of overall team structure.»
Antonio Rüdiger and His Enduring Injury Woes
Rüdiger’s injury problems are undoubtedly one of the main reasons he has slipped down the DFB team’s pecking order. He had to miss all four qualification matches after the aforementioned victory against Northern Ireland due to injury. The cause was a thigh injury that cost him a hefty 19 games at Real Madrid. Shortly thereafter, in January 2026, another knee injury sidelined him for almost another month. He is one of the biggest, if not *the* biggest, losers of the sluggish World Cup qualification phase.
Injuries have been a recurring theme throughout Rüdiger’s career: at VfB Stuttgart, he suffered meniscus problems; at AS Roma, he tore his cruciate ligament; at FC Chelsea, he was plagued by groin issues; and now at Real, it’s once again thigh and knee problems. And this comes at the worst possible time, with the season’s final sprint and the World Cup on the horizon!
This problem is also well-known to the Real Madrid management. Since his recovery, Rüdiger has once again become a permanent fixture in coach Alvaro Arbeloa’s central defense, and Los Blancos plan to extend his contract, which expires in the summer, by another year – but with a condition. According to Mundo Deportivo, Rüdiger’s salary, reportedly around 14 million euros, is to be significantly reduced. Club legend Luka Modric is cited as a comparison, who received only half of his previous salary in his final season at Real.
Whether Rüdiger would agree to such a pay cut is questionable, as interesting alternatives are apparently emerging. According to Tuttosport, Juventus (with his former Roma mentor Luciano Spalletti on the coaching bench), Manchester United, and Liverpool are now interested in his services. The paper further reports that Juve is enticing him with a two-year contract worth a total of ten to twelve million euros.
Antonio Rüdiger’s Scandal File: ‘Experts’ Call for DFB Dismissal
However, injuries are only one dimension of Rüdiger’s challenges. Anyone who fields him gets a physically strong tackler and a mentality monster with a special will to win. At the same time, he also brings some downsides: questionable actions on and off the pitch that sometimes border on outright scandals. His file is long and continuously growing.
At the 2022 World Cup, he reportedly insulted a FIFA volunteer as an «idiot.» In 2023, he responded to a fan’s request for an autograph with the words «Spasti, Spasti» (a German derogatory term, akin to ‘spaz’). A video from March also made headlines, showing him shouting at a fan wanting a photo: «You don’t need to touch me.» Earlier this year, he made a provocative «head-off» gesture towards an Atletico fan. In the Copa del Rey final against arch-rival FC Barcelona, he threw a tape roller at the referee and insulted him in the worst possible way, leading to a six-match ban.
After the Clásico incident, some observers and so-called experts even demanded his expulsion from the national team. Instead, Nagelsmann gave him a form of probation. «The limit has been reached. He shouldn’t allow himself any more, otherwise there will be greater consequences,» he stated. Following the recent Getafe incident, where Rüdiger hit the grounded Diego Rico with his knee to the head, similar calls intensified. However, there were no consequences from the DFB; quite the opposite.
Antonio Rüdiger: ‘I Want to Provide Stability and Security’
Nagelsmann, however, defended him. Rüdiger, he said, is a type of player who «polarizes» and «more is made of it than with others.» Germany captain Joshua Kimmich also defended his teammate: «Toni is, of course, a very important player for us. I sometimes feel that we in Germany forget what Toni has delivered over the last three or four years.» Kimmich added that Rüdiger is someone «you can rely on and whom you can play in every match without having to worry as a teammate or get a stomach ache.» Real coach Arbeloa went even further with his praise. «If you ask me, I’d love to make a statue of Rüdiger and put it in the garden,» he said, calling his protégé «a role model for everyone.»
Rüdiger is a player who elicits strong reactions from many, and whose mentality has both positive and negative aspects. He is also not always the perpetrator in every story, for example, after the match against Slovakia, when he, Nnamdi Collins, and Jonathan Tah were subjected to racist insults online by misguided individuals.
Nevertheless, the two-time Champions League winner wants to take responsibility and announced improvement: «The discussion shows me once again that I have a responsibility that I haven’t always lived up to in certain moments. I take serious and objective criticism to heart because I know myself that I’ve had moments that were clearly over the top. I don’t want to be a source of unrest; instead, I want to provide stability and security.»
What role the 33-year-old will play in the national team and at the World Cup might become clear during the upcoming international matches against Switzerland (March 27) and Ghana (March 30). For few other players are these two appearances likely to be of greater importance for their future in the DFB team. He himself, however, faces the situation calmly and would put himself at the service of the team even if the decision goes against him and in favor of Schlotterbeck and Tah. He emphasized this again to Kicker.
«Jona and Nico are playing very strongly and, above all, very consistently this season,» Rüdiger said, but also clarified: «During a World Cup, we anyway need more than just eleven players, especially this summer. The conditions will be very demanding, as will the travel effort and the somewhat increased number of matches.»
So, for him, it’s clear: «If Julian needs me, I’ll be there – whether in the starting eleven or from the bench, to secure the result.»
A statement that Nagelsmann will undoubtedly acknowledge favorably.
Antonio Rüdiger: Statistics for the 2025/26 Season
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| Games | 18 |
| Goals | 1 |
| Assists | 0 |
| Minutes Played | 1,515 |