Munich – Against Manchester City in the Champions League, Toni Kroos sat on the bench for 90 minutes. This causes incomprehension. A former real-life keeper puts it in order.
The “Mystery Toni Kroos” is also the “Mystery Zinédine Zidane”.
Dios mío, why did the Real Madrid coach leave the German midfielder on the bench in the crucial first leg of the Champions League round of 16 against Manchester City?
Football fans and experts in Spain are puzzling over what could have caused the French coach to decide not to bet on Kroos.
The excitement is huge. Understandably so: The Kroos are threatened with a 2-1 loss to ex-Barca coach Pep Guardiola’s team. (Service: Champions League schedule)
Worse still, Real have already been eliminated from the Spanish Cup, Madrid lost the lead in La Liga after only one point from their last two games – and now, of all times, Clásico are up against FC Barcelona. (La Liga: Real Madrid – FC Barcelona, Sun from 9pm)
“It seems to me there’s something going on”
“There must be something going on with Kroos, otherwise he would have to come onto the field now that Madrid is losing control,” said ex-real professional and coach Jorge Valdano on Spanish TV during the Champions League match on Wednesday evening.
And even with a time lag, there is a mixture of disbelief and incomprehension among observers. “Kroos has not even warmed up. He could have been sent to warm up with the idea that he was still coming,” Madrid former player Álvaro Benito told Spanish radio station Cadena SER.
Benito had followed Zidane’s TV interviews after the defeat to Citizens and said: “I have the impression that something is going on.
Gündogan was “a bit surprised”
Even in the ranks of the victorious opponent, people were surprised at the 2014 World Champion’s banking position: “I was a bit surprised. We had expected him from the beginning. Toni is an anchor for Real,” said city professional Ilkay Gündogan.
After the match, Gündogan talked to his national team colleague. “He said that he would have loved to play, of course, but they have a clásico on Sunday.”
A hint of possible reasons for Kroos’ place in the bench, only they don’t really fit the picture: Kroos was the perennial fixture at Real Madrid for months and was almost never absent, especially in the important games.