Antonio Rudiger still waiting for 'justice' after suffering racial abuse before Chelsea move

Victim of abuse | Antonio Rudiger
AFP/Getty Images
Simon Johnson29 July 2017

Chelsea's new £34m defender Antonio Rudiger admits he is still waiting for justice from FIFA and the Italian FA after being racially abused last season.

Rudiger joined Chelsea from Roma earlier this month, but is not prepared to forgive or forget the ugly incident that took place in March.

The Germany international was targeted by Lazio fans while playing for Roma in an Italian Cup match. It was so bad the stadium announcer had to urge them to stop over the PA system.

The Italian football authorities did issue a fine to the club, but didn't demand the part of the stadium where the jeers came from to be closed for a few games or punish the supporters responsible.

As the international governors of the game, FIFA can act but they disbanded their anti-racism workforce last September.

Rudiger said: "Not all Italian people are racist. For me, I just want justice. I want FIFA or the FA in Italy just to suspend those people who do that.

"It is not all the people in Italy who are like that. If we always talk about racism in Italy, people think that all Italians are racist people and it is not like that.

"I just mean those specific people who do that. And it is not all. But those people need to be banned from the stadium or fined."

There were other incidents which took place in Serie A, which is why Rudiger has urged FIFA to get involved.

Speaking about what it was like to hear monkey noises aimed at him during that Lazio match, he added: "You feel alone.

In Pictures | Chelsea vs Inter Milan | 28-07-2017

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"I can keep my focus but people love to say ‘stay calm’ or ‘don’t do anything’. It is easy for you to say those things when you are not black and you never feel what it is like. You cannot even put yourself in my position of how that feels.

"In that moment, it is like this: you are alone. You have to be strong. But each human is different. Someone takes it and doesn’t react. Other react. I can understand both."

Rudiger is delighted to be at Chelsea though, 13 months after a dream move to Stamford Bridge broke down due to suffering a serious knee ligament injury.

A deal between the Blues and Roma had been virtually agreed, only for the 24-year-old to spend several months on the sidelines.

"It (the injury) could have been the biggest moment of my career," he said. "It was the biggest moment at the time.

"But I believe in God and everything has its time. So one year later I won the Confederations Cup with Germany and one year later I am also at Chelsea.

"Of course, at that moment it was sad. I knew then that I had to work to get stronger back. And this is what happened.

"It is a dream to be here. I always wanted to play in the Premier League and it is now years since my name was first linked to Chelsea.

"Now I am here and I am very happy and want to thank all the people that made this come true. At the time (in 2016) it wasn’t the right moment and now I am here.

"The whole squad has helped me feel welcome, they are very nice and very kind and very respectful. I like that."

Rudiger made his first appearance for the club as a second half substitute in the 2-1 defeat to Inter Milan on Saturday.

He admits it could take some time to adjust to the English top flight, but he can't wait to face the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Jamie Vardy.

He concluded: "I have not experienced the Premier League yet but the Italian league is more tactical. You don’t have these open games.

"In England this is different. Both teams are attacking the whole time. That is the main two differences between the two leagues.

"And of course the physical aspect in England. You need to prepare for a physical game.

"There are a lot strikers – Jamie Vardy, Lukaku, a lot of strikers where you look at them and it is a challenge. The whole League is a challenge."

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