Roberto Martinez told CBS Sports on Paramount+ (29/05/21 at 10:25 pm) that Antonio Rudiger’s challenge on Kevin de Bruyne leaves a ‘sour taste’ in his mouth, as Chelsea beat Manchester City in the Champions League final.
Midway through the second half, Man City’s quick-thinking playmaker had to be subbed off after a clash with Chelsea’s no-nonsense defender.
At first, it seemed like a coming together between the duo, with De Bruyne coming off far worse and donning a black eye whilst sat on the bench in Porto.
But Belgium boss, Martinez, thinks Rudiger should have been sent off after he claimed that he ‘properly’ left his shoulder on de Bruyne.
“When you see it at the beginning, you are thinking, ‘Oh, it’s a clash of heads’,” said Martinez. “Rudiger is holding his head and Kevin is in a really bad state.
“Kevin is not a player that he goes down for no reason. You can see the pain and it’s a swollen eye.
“For me, Rudiger is very, very fortunate. When you look at the replay there is no clash of heads. He’s properly leaving the shoulder against Kevin. And he seems concussed and we will see the state of that.
“But that leaves a sour taste because Rudiger’s holding his head, it’s almost that he wants to show that he’s hiding something. For me, it was excessive force and it was reckless. And it should have been a red card.”
De Bruyne having to go off was more a body blow to a confidence-drained Man City side that were just being outthought by their English opponents.
It flattened the mood for the Premier League champions, who huffed and puffed, but didn’t really test Mendy in between Chelsea’s sticks.
And just like Man City as a club, this defeat also means that de Bruyne has to once again wait to add a European Cup to his glittering career.
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