Real Madrid defender fit to start for national team in Euro knockout game | OneFootball

In what will be a major boost for Germany, Real Madrid star Antonio Rudiger has fully recovered from his injury and is ready to start tonight against Denmark in the UEFA Euro 2024 Round of 16 clash against Denmark.

This update comes from journalist Florian Plettenberg who reports that the 31-year-old defender has given the green light to play from the start tonight.

Hosts Germany face off against Denmark at the Signal Iduna Park in Dortmund tonight and had been sweating over the fitness of Rudiger.

The Real Madrid mainstay had suffered a muscle strain during Die Mannschaft’s last group-stage encounter against Switzerland which ended in a 1-1 draw.

The suspension of Jonathan Tah for the game only added to the concerns for Julian Nagelsmann & co. heading into the knockout fixture in Dortmund.

Ready to start. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Germany, though, received a timely boost on Friday as Rudiger resumed training normally with the rest of the group, showing signs of fully recovering.

Manager Nagelsmann was cautiously optimistic about the defender’s availability during his press conference on Friday, as he said (h/t Mundo Deportivo):

“At the moment, it looks like he is fine for tomorrow. If nothing happens, he will be able to play. Rudiger is very important, so the doctors have tried everything to make sure he is ready.

“We will see what happens in training today, sometimes if you have muscle problems you have to wait until after the sessions. At the moment, he’s fit again, so we’re happy to have him back.”

Now, it appears that Rudiger has received the all-clear from the medical department and has himself given the green light for his availability tonight as Germany hope to make it past Denmark and qualify for the quarterfinals.