Antonio Rudiger was born on March 3, 1993 in a refugee neighborhood: Neukoll, located in Berlin, Germany. His parents met there after fleeing Sierra Leone, a country that was in a strong civil war.
“My childhood was quite difficult. I was born and raised in a refugee neighborhood in Berlin. It is not a simple area. It is difficult to grow there. That is why I always say that in football there is no pressure. The pressure is that you don’t have to eat, I’ve seen it ”, the Chelsea defender told Diario Marca.
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Fortunately, the ball was Rüdiger’s life partner. In addition to the education and values instilled in him by his parents, soccer helped him stay away from the violence or vices that he could find in his neighborhood.
He spent his days practicing soccer in the streets and in amateur soccer. Surprisingly, his early years were spent as a midfielder and forward. For this reason, one of his idols was Ronaldo, whom he saw as the most complete striker. ‘I had everything, shame about the injuries’Rüdiger told about ‘the Phenomenon’.
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Some of his childhood coaches described him as very calm off the field and very passionate on the field. At the age of 15, the invitation came to join the lower divisions of Borussia Dortmund and there began the rise in the footballer’s career.
He came to Stuttgart, later to Rome and in 2017 he came to Chelsea; now he can boast of having won the Champions League with the Blues.
In addition to his activity on the pitch, Rüdiger also carries out humanitarian and altruistic work in Germany and Sierra Leone, an aspect to be highlighted in the life of the German player.
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