Antonio Rudiger said Timo Werner has always been quick since he was young but insisted his Germany teammate is not the fastest at Chelsea.
“My speciality is that I am really fast” — that was the one of the first things Werner said in his first interview with Chelsea following his summer move from Leipzig.
He’s clearly not all talk — time and time again, his pace has made the difference for Chelsea during games.
Hakim Ziyech’s opening goal in the 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid a few days ago, for example, was made possible by his outpacing Atleti defenders.
Rudiger said Werner was already outstanding because of his pace when they were together at Stuttgart.
Asked whether he knew that Werner would make it at the top level, the centre-back told Soccer AM: “Yes, because his speed and eagerness to score goals, [these] come to him naturally.
“When he came up the first time [at Stuttgart], he was 16 or 17, and in training, he was so fast, so quick, and his finishing was very good at that level.
“It was just a matter of time for him to breakthrough [at highest level].”
Unsurprisingly, based on FIFA21 rating, Werner is the fastest at Chelsea.
But Rudiger still thinks that he could beat Werner over longer distances.
“Honestly, something tells me that Fik [Tomori] and I are quicker [than Werner],” he explained.
“Maybe not for the first 10 metres, but if we go, I would say it’s between me and Fik.”
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