Kepa and Rudigar in a Heated Exchange After a 5-2 Defeat
By: Tonny Otieno
Posted on Tuesday, April 6, 2021
Chelsea’s defender Antonnio Rudigar and goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga were involved in a heated argument that almost led to a fight causing tension at Stamford Bridge. Temperatures flared on Sunday, April 4, during a training session at Cobham. This came after the blues suffered a 5-2 loss against the visiting team West Bromwich Albion.
The Saturday match did not find Chelsea at their best since Thiago Silver was given an early red card sending him off the field.
The red card brought a completely negative turnout of events as the visitors took complete advantage of the deficiency of numbers to hammer them. This was the first defeat under Thomas Tuchel since his arrival at Stamford Bridge after Chelsea legend and ex-coach Frank Lampard was shown the door.
Tension from the terrible defeat left Kepa and Rudigar in a heated exchange as it escalated to the changing room. The two players were benched on the Saturday clash but took part in the training session on Sunday.
They began pushing each other on the pitch after Kepa differed with Rudigar’s recent challenge during a training session. It forced the teammates to come in and separate them. Tuchel responded immediately by dismissing the left back off the pitch to the dressing room so that he could calm down as he could not complete the game due to his fury.
Further reports suggest that Rudigar apologized to Kepa for his unprompted behavior, and Chelsea’s boss Thomas Tuchel is now satisfied that the matter is settled.
This is believed to be the second incident after Cesar Azpilicueta and Reece James were also involved in a frank exchange of perspectives in the past after Chelsea’s defeat.
Chelsea is now set to proceed to the champions league quarterfinals against FC Porto in the next few days. The blues are scheduled to face the Portuguese giants on Wednesday, April 7.
