Real Madrid have just said goodbye to a legend, not for the first time in the history of the club, but the retirement of Toni Kroos is a seismic moment in recent La Liga history.
Midfielder Kroos is one of the most decorated players in the history of the game, with a 2014 World Cup winners medal and five Champions League medals among an incredible haul of 32.
In ten years at the Santiago Bernabeu Kroos was part of the best midfield trio in world football, alongside Luka Modric and Casemiro and, in this time he has won four Champions League medals, and this month he made it four La Liga titles. Last week Kroos announced he would retire from club and international football after Germany’s Euro 2024 campaign and, in his last La Liga appearance at the Bernabeu, a goalless draw with Real Betis, he received a guard of honour and a standing ovation from the whole stadium when he was substituted late in the game.
Los Blancos have had a stellar campaign and they still have a Champions League clash against Borussia Dortmund to look forward to, so there may be one last note in the story of Toni Kroos in Madrid. Here at SBOTOP we’ll be previewing and reporting on the European showcase and it could be another great night for the midfield ace.
Kroos departure is big La Liga 2024 news indeed, alongside the impending arrival of Kylian Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain, and fans can justifiably be wondering who can fill the boots of the 34 year old maestro after he plays his last game in the famous white shirt. England star Jude Bellingham has made a brilliant start to his Real Madrid career but head coach Carlo Ancelotti doesn’t see him as a natural successor, nor does he think it will be easy to find one: “The closer we get to Bellingham the better it is for us,” said the Blancos boss. “There is no player with Kroos’ characteristics on the market, but we have to replace him in another way. We have midfielders with a lot of quality and we have to adapt next season’s game to their characteristics.”
He’ll be a big part of Germany’s Euro 2024 campaign and then Kroos will hang up his boots. So what happens next? Here are three routes I believe Ancelotti can take.
Arda Guler
If we take the Madrid boss at his word and he doesn’t see an obvious replacement in the market, then he might look to his existing group of players and that could mean an opening for Turkish star Arda Guler. At 19 years of age he is at the start of his career and he has been short of game time since his move from Fenerbahce last summer. Guler has struggled with some niggling injuries but when he has appeared he has impressed, scoring six goals in ten appearances, 440 minutes of game time in total. He’s not a like for like replacement for Kroos; Guler can play as a winger and he’s yet to develop the defensive capabilities to match his creative instinct; but Ancelotti is a supreme coach and he will see the options to use a player with Guler’s potential and help him to develop his game.
Florian Wirtz
A higher profile name that has been doing the rounds is Bayer Leverkusen’s 21 year old sensation Florian Wirtz who has just been elevated to world star status, after he excelled throughout Die Werkself’s Bundesliga winning campaign. He’ll be part of the Germany Euro 2024 team alongside Kroos when the hosts have genuine hopes of winning the tournament, and what a story that would be.
Wirtz is an attack minded midfielder with superb vision and boundless energy and he’ll be on the radar of all Europe’s top clubs. Real Madrid will be an attractive option and the La Liga 2024 betting odds are likely to predict a successful defence of their domestic title. But Leverkusen could well be favourites to retain their own league title and the news that Xabi Alonso has decided to stay on as coach will help to persuade their star players to remain at the club.
It might be a case of ‘wait and see’ and a move for Wirtz could materialise in 12 months time, which may also mean that Ancelotti pursues the Guler option for the coming season.
Nicolo Barella
Option three comes into play if Ancelotti decides to move in the market now and bring in a top rated midfielder, able to slot straight into the Los Blancos side. Inter Milan central midfielder Nicolo Barella fits the brief and, at 27 years of age he is in the prime of his career while he still has plenty of time on his side. He often plays on the right side of midfield, while Kroos favours the left, but the two players are very similar in terms of technical expertise and Barella can find openings with ease, as well as sniffing out danger when out of possession.
A Scudetto winner and 2023 Champions League finalist, as well as a Euro 2020 winner with Italy, Barella loves to play on the biggest stage…but he won’t come cheap.
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