Antonio Rudiger opens up on first Chelsea goal: ‘I couldn’t even see the ball!’

Antonio Rudiger admits he was fortunate to score his first goal for Chelsea as he couldn’t even see the ball as he rose for a header.

The German defender, 24, joined the Blues in the summer from Roma and has made a bright start to his career at Stamford Bridge.

Rudiger got on the scoresheet for the first time while wearing a Chelsea shirt in Wednesday’s 2-1 Carabao Cup victory over Everton.

But the international star admits he got slightly lucky as he was blinded by the floodlights before putting a header past Toffees goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.

‘First of all, I am very, very happy we won the match and I could contribute to the result,’ Rudiger told Chelsea’s official website.

‘I am very happy to score my first goal for Chelsea. The thing is, I didn’t see the ball because of the light. I was looking up. It was a good header but a bit of luck also as well.

‘They had two or three chances, that’s it. We gave away the game a bit in the second half, Everton had more ball possession, and one time they scored but the important thing is we won.’

Rudiger’s first-half goal gave Premier League champions Chelsea a comfortable lead at Stamford Bridge against an Everton side led by caretaker manager David Unsworth.

Brazilian attacker Willian doubled Chelsea’s advantage in injury-time before Dominic Calvert-Lewin netted a consolation.

Rudiger added: ‘You can win a trophy, so you have to be motivated. It was a big chance as well for young players like Ampadu, Musonda and Kenedy.

‘Everyone has to be motivated and for our club this is the fastest way to win something, so we have to go for it.’

Chelsea will discover their last-eight opponent at 16:00 GMT on Thursday and when asked who he hopes the club face, Rudiger added: ‘I don’t care; it can be anyone!’

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