Former Chelsea star Pat Nevin has praised defender Antonio Rudiger for his strong start to life in English football, and believes the Germany international can play a crucial part in the Blues future. 

Rudiger joined Chelsea from AS Roma last summer, and has since established himself as a stalwart in Antonio Conte’s side – the 25-year-old has started 40 games in all competitions this season for the Blues, scoring three goals.

And after putting in a Man of the Match performance in the weekend’s FA Cup final victory over Manchester United, Nevin says the 25-year-old has a big future at Stamford Bridge.

“There were other fine performances but for once, I totally agreed with the choice made at Wembley for Man of the Match,” Nevin told Chelsea’s official website.

“Antonio Rudiger has managed to stay under the radar of many Premier League watchers outside of Stamford Bridge.

.@ToniRuediger – man of the match, and Lord of the Dance! 🕺https://t.co/9jjWKfktTZ

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 20, 2018

“I was beginning to get fed up with the sneering looks I was getting from some when I said he was probably the best proponent of the art of pure defending in the Premier League at the moment. That has now changed.

“The secret is now out. In short, if Rudiger is marking you then you might as well pass the ball because neither you nor anyone else is going to get past him in a one-on-one battle.

“It doesn’t seem to matter if they try to outpace him or use outrageous skills, one after the other the top players have found out pretty quickly that it’s a bit pointless even trying.

“This game provided the final evidence if any was needed, Antonio Rudiger is now a cult figure with the Chelsea fans and it is almost unthinkable not starting him in any game that has meaning at all.”

The Blues are set for a summer overhaul after a fifth placed finish in the summer, with manager Antonio Conte also expected to step down in the coming weeks.

Regardless of whom is in charge at The Bridge however, Nevin believes Chelsea must build their squad around a certain group of players, including Rudiger.

Nevin added: “He [Rudiger] joins Azpi [Cesar Azpilicueta], Eden Hazard, N’Golo Kante and Thibaut Courtois in what I hope will be the base of the team going forward for quite some time.

“It is the summer now and there will be changes, there always are, but as long as those five stick around it will be possible to be competitive at the highest levels.”