Former Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger once gave a surprise answer to which teammate picked up the most fines at Stamford Bridge.
Antonio Rudiger, who played at Chelsea for five seasons between 2017 and 2022, became a cult hero during his time in West London.
The 32-year-old German centre-back developed into one of the world’s top defenders, which eventually earned him a move to Real Madrid.
Appearances Goals Yellow cards Red cards Trophies
203 12 33 0 5
Antonio Rudiger’s Chelsea career
Rudiger has gone from strength to strength in Spain with Madrid. Back in 2024, Rio Ferdinand raved about Rudiger by naming him as one of the world’s top five best central defenders.
If you look at the current Chelsea backline, they’re crying out for someone with his type of dominant presence.
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Antonio Rudiger claimed N’Golo Kante picked up the most fines at Chelsea
During an interview with Soccer AM back in 2019, Rudiger made the surprise claim that N’Golo Kante picked up more fines than any other Chelsea player.
The legendary midfielder, who now plays in Saudi Arabia for Al-Ittihad, has always been perceived from the outside as the ultimate professional. It turns out that his timekeeping isn’t too good, though.
When asked who picks up the most fines, Rudiger said: “I would go for N’Golo Kante. It’s not too late but always like one minute. When we have to be here at 10:30, he comes one minute [after]… You can’t hate him. The person who hates this guy, you have a serious problem with yourself because he’s so nice, so friendly, always smiling. I’ve never seen him angry.”
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Kante, who was voted in Chelsea’s team of the 2010s, has gone down in history as one of the club’s best players.
It’s an impossible task for anyone to fill the shoes of the all-action central midfielder, but Moises Caicedo has made an admirable attempt so far.
Speaking back in 2018, Eden Hazard called Kante the world’s best midfielder. He proved during a seven-year stay with the Blues his world-class abilities time and time again, particularly on the biggest stages.
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
N’Golo Kante still putting up unbelievable numbers
At the age of 33, Kante is still as dominant as ever over in Saudi Arabia.
It may make some Chelsea fans feel like he left the club a year or two earlier than he should have.
Matches Goals Assists Pass accuracy Tackles per 90 Interceptions per 90 Recoveries per 90 Average match rating
22 3 2 90.9% 1.67% 2.41 6.53 7.84
Al-Ittihad’s N’Golo Kante in the 2024/25 Saudi Pro League via FOTMOB
Kante exited Chelsea and English football in 2023, leaving behind a sensational legacy in the Premier League, winning the title with Leicester City on top of his numerous successes in West London.
We doubt we’ll ever see an individual in Blues colours again quite as industrious without the ball as him.