I think you are way too harsh on him at times but i do agree with his statement that he isn't Casemiro, he can't play that position and we will never get the best out of him there. Btw his thread needs a new title, Undecima feels like it happened a long time ago .
I feel I am not harsh enough. He was a huge liability last year, found himself at the world cup, started the season well... then went back to being a huge liability. He didn't need to be Casemiro to not kill our defenders and goalkeeper with badly placed lazy passes away the back.
About what? He does not tackle, he does not dribble the ball forward, does not score nearly as much as he should giving the space he finds himself in....Him and Benzema I despise so much.
He might not be at a good level at this time but if he could do nothing of what you say he would never have made it to both Bayern’s and Madrid’s midfield and be crucial parts of both of them, so, right now , not having his best moments ,needs some time on the bench perhaps, but you seemed to suggest that he is incapable of these things generally which IMO is not true, he can tackle and he can score if played further forward and he does not need to “dribble” the ball forward when he can simply pass it forward, (or anywhere else for that matter to help start our attacks) which he can also do, leave the dribbling to the dribblers, you need all sorts in a “team”
Watched the game versus Holland, he was average at best ! Both him and Modric changed so much after World Cup.
Modric is mentally drained and he's also a bit too old by now to be running for everyone else the way he used to for the first 4 years at the club. Kroos was never a runner, he plays in his rhythm which is 2 x slower then Modric, Casemiro or Isco. It's OK while things are going well, but when they're not, Kroos is a liability and always has been, simply because he never get's stuck in.
Kroos needs legs beside him in order to excel, Modric’s ability and physicality is waning, and this is impacted Kroos. We need to start moving to replace Modric, Ceballos or anyone else (e.g. Pogba, Kova, etc.). I don’t think this player necessarily needs to be the same as Modric, just to be clear...
Or maybe replace Kroos while his stock is still high? The idea or replacing Modric just because he can't run for Kroos any more doesn't sit well with me. Kroos simply not that good to deserve such a treatment.
Modric is the one who’s just turned 33 and has been playing out of skin for several years now. I think he’s the one who will decline steeper than Kroos and naturally we should be looking to find / develop a top class replacement given his age.
Yeah I agree, it’s not a decline per se, loss of form for sure. Modric I do think might be linked to a decline, though we shouldn’t forget that’s barely had a rest for well over a season.
Kroos never had any inherent passion for the game. When asked whether he was nervous before scoring that crucial last minute free kick for Germany at the World Cup, his response was simply: “nervous? i don’t get nervous, football is just a game” which indicated to me that he doesn’t really feel the same type of way other players may feel when they lose. Plus, he said explicitly that he doesn’t intend to play much into his 30s and that once his current contract with Madrid is up, he’ll retire and focus on his business. He’s 29 soon so you can say his career only has a few more years.
Oh yeah and his trophy cabinet is already bulging with 4 CL titles and a World Cup. He’ll continue to care less and less the more he runs down his contract.
Maybe or maybe not no one can know this for sure, maybe he’ll be a professional, understand that he’s being paid well for his work, and makes sure he does his best and gets back to his best level, who knows
He doesn't tackle or show much ambition in the final third though, Kroos does some things very well but looks completely disinterested in becoming a more complete player
Modric has to be replaced regardless. I just think that we shouldn't look for a guy who can run for Kroos because Kroos just not worth it. Best replace Kroos together with Modric while we're at it.
I’d say as most have, some of last season and this season he hasn’t been tackling much but to say that he’s never tackled is incorrect IMO, likewise if he is played so far away from goal then we don’t get to see the Kroos that we know can assist and score goals, as we have seen him do before, as he said recently, he is not Casemiro, maybe that is an indication of how far away he is being asked to play from the final third?, I think if anything he is already a fairly complete player who is now becoming disinterested in some aspects of his game, rather than not being able to do then, which in itself should reward him with some time on the bench, as YOUNGSTARS87 said, more , can’t be bothered than decline or unable to.
I don't want Kroos replaced but I do think his contribution is overstated in some regards. He needs to occasionally make runs into the box if he's going to sit further up the pitch. He's too reluctant to enter the penalty area at times. He really was lazy last season tracking back and we've seen that at times this season and similarly he never really got stuck in unless it was for revenge, this season he has helped out a little more.
Bayern thought Kroos was just a guy making side to side passes they could have easily replaced and trust me everybody there regrets that decision. He's hard to figure out, but to me he's a player that is ridiculously good when the team is working correctly.
Again he does some things very well but sitting at the edge of the box and rarely making a run inside is an area for improvement, similarly we've all seen him jogging back like Marcelo's brother from a different mother. I'd argue Kroos right now looks like the player linked with us but I wasn't sure would make this team better. He's shooting a bit more which is good and he's starting to recover more balls again good but for me to be a starting midfielder in this team you need to show a complete range of ability consistently.