The wife has given permission, so Kroos is indeed leaving for Real
The wife has given permission, so Kroos is indeed leaving for Real
One by one, Saudi Arabia aims to create a constellation of football stars in the Pro League. After Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Ángel Di María, Roberto Firmino, Hakim Ziyech, Eduardo Mendy, and Ruben Neves, among others, the Middle Eastern country is advancing towards fulfilling its goal.
The Saudi clubs had set their sights on Toni Kroos as well. However, they have extended their agreement with the German World Cup-winning midfielder for another year, despite previously rejecting the proposal from Real Madrid.
But Kroos did not make the decision to renew his contract with Real Madrid alone. He signed the contract with the permission of his wife, Jessica Farber. In an interview with the German television channel "RTL," he gave this straightforward statement.
He said, "I did it at the behest of my wife. She gave me permission to stay at Real Madrid for another year. She said, 'Do whatever makes you happy.' I have followed her words."
At 33 years of age, Kroos was a regular in Carlo Ancelotti's squad at Real Madrid last season. Along with scoring 2 goals in 52 matches, he provided assistance in 6 goals. He spent a total of 3,813 minutes on the field. He sent 128 passes to the attacking third in the UEFA Champions League, which is more than any other player. And with a precise pass accuracy of 93.8%, he solidified his reputation as a reliable passer. Looking at the statistics, it can be estimated that Kroos will still be considered an important part of Ancelotti's team in the upcoming season. And that is indeed the case.
Even though he has won almost everything there is to win (20 trophies in 9 seasons) with Real Madrid, Kroos's thirst for success has not diminished. He also mentioned in the interview, "I don't see any reason why the upcoming season won't be as good as the previous one. I still enjoy playing the game. I'm still hungry for trophies."
Leaving a club after a long time of playing is not always a joyful moment. There are many examples of this. However, Kroos seems well aware of this. He said, "Experienced players know that bidding farewell does not always come with joy. There are many influential examples of those who were not given the opportunity to sit on the bench or take to the field. People forget about them. But I won't wait for that."
At the end of the interview, Kroos shared a sweet and touching story. His grandfather had apparently thought that after the end of his contract with Real Madrid, he would retire from playing. However, after receiving the message from his grandfather, he became emotional, saying, "My grandfather wrote to me, 'Thank you for continuing to play.' After reading it, I became emotional."