They are like a cult. Repeating the same thing. Our problem hasn't been compeleted short passes, recycled possession, corners and set pieces. Our problems are no grit, now workrate from midfield, no energy, lost possession in bad areas, lack of defensive structure and poor shape. However maybe if they keep repeating he is the best passer ever it will fix all this.
I'm not sure "he's" the problem tho. We still have Isco, Valverde and James and up until just a couple of weeks ago also had Kovacic, Ceballos and Llorente. If he's still getting on the field looking disinterested its not really Kroos' fault or lack of options, its all on the manager. Like Lucas Vasquez. Lucas is not the problem, he only plays when he's told to and plays how he's told to. People just don't want to look at Zidane and see anything less than perfection.
Kroos: "We want to play better football & more consistently. Not easy to take the team back to where Zidane left it, its difficult to reach that level. Our team was in a different situation when Zidane returned in mid-March of 2019 compared to when he left the team in May 2018."— M•A•J (@Ultra_Suristic) August 5, 2019
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat the ******** happened to this guy. It baffles me how he can play with this little intensity as a starter in both one of the greatest club and national teams. Wheres the accountability? Why is it that instead of getting some verticality from him Casemiro is the one roaming from his position? Its doesnt take a genius to realize that we won titles when we had a well disciplined anchor in Casemiro, asking him to play box to box to cover for his lethargic partners is a big part in why we keep conceding every time the opponent has the ball. James works really hard off the ball but is gassed by the 50th min, and Modric has been a physical beast for us, but instead of this convoluted strategy to cover for Casemiro why not anchor him in front of the back four and get Kroos and his partner play passer/creator more effectively? Kroos, Courtois, Varane, and Carvajal have a lot of quality but need the Marcelo/Isco/Bale/James treatment. Lucas has neither the quality nor the form, and whats baffling me is we have Brahim, Rodrygo, Odriozola as alternatives. Its clearly not working with this guy, why not try something different.
I wanted to see how Kroos performed this season but I think we're past his sell by date by a good 12 to 18 months. Midfield partners are literally running themselves into the ground so Kroos can walk around and pass the ball sideways without any defensive or offensive responsibility.
Perfect post. The past years it was Modric playing for two. He can't do that anymore so we have Casemiro way out of position trying to force movement. People complained about James because they expected him to be like PrimeModric who played for two. The reality is Kroos kills us in 433. He should never be used in such position. If we are playing a 433, it needs to be Modric, James and Casemiro. If not these, we need to be in that 4141.
Just can’t play the role we’re asking from him. I place more blame on the coach for that. It’s clear he offers almost nothing in terms of defense/physicality. He’s a world class passer that needs to be used differently.
Can't believe the guys at managingmadrid rated him 6. He was the worst player on the pitch for us. When the whole team dysfunction the blame is on the coach and/or on the midfield. Yesterday he failed even simple passes or his decisions were mind blowing like passing to James in front of our penalty area when it was clearly visible that he had 3 opponents around him. We have no speed at all in our game. I acknowledge that our forwards are very static at times but we are always preferring to hold the ball instead of a more risky play. I hope Zidane tries James Modric and Casemiro midfield and I hope it is working when we face opponents with such high intensity.
It's like he's oblivious to what's behind his back and like nobody yells it to him. He keeps the ball until the player behind his back catches up then he falls down and hopes for a foul.
His main issue is positioning and movement. As YS87 said he can`t play in 3 man midfield. He is sitting to deep and wide, not offering continuation movement in space, not being outlet in depth - which is crucial. The end result being that opponent can effectively press him and team in general. Which leads to either back-passes and losing tempo and space, and also makes us incredibly prone to losing possession in terrible spots. He is bench player at this point. It is either Casemiro, Modrić and James, or Casemiro and Modrić as double pivot, plus Isco and James as LM / RM. I would opt for the latter considering it gives us extra man in midfield and more creativity, which on itself should mitigate some issues despite shit tactics from Zidane. Plus defensively it gives us more structure.
I don't think Modric can be relied upon either. He's stamina has declined drastically and he's not getting any younger. A midfield signing was crucial this summer and we didn't get one because Zidane wanted 200M Pogba only.
If Pogba was signed I am pretty sure that he would have played instead of James, not Kroos. Same shit.
4141 seems the best formation now. Let Casemiro only focus on defense with Isco and Modric/James in front of him. Hazard and Bale on the wings. Kroos is DONE.
Kroos should never wear the shirt again. Abysmal. Hopefully Man U are serious about 75 million in January. I’ll help him pack.
Selling Kroos and recalling Odegaard would actually improve our team while leaving us with a cool 70+M.
The players we shipped out on loan, need to come back in January. Kubo and Odegaard would offer so much more than what we are getting right now.
The most ridiculous thing ever. Nobody will ever do business with us again if we give and take players within months.
Shit happens. Proper planning by the coach would have prevented this. We clearly can’t buy a top player in January, won’t be available for one and will be no doubt CL tied. Kubo and Odegaard are our next best options. I can’t bear another season like last. Shambles.