Toni Kroos and his brother Félix broke down El Clásico on their podcast *Luppen*. The former Real Madrid midfielder admitted the club’s season has been poor, and that internal locker room tensions directly impacted their performance against Barcelona last Sunday.
“Going two seasons without winning is unacceptable at Madrid, period. The result on the pitch stems from the bad atmosphere within the squad. They might have been motivated to win El Clásico, but it wasn’t enough. The defeat was already accepted before kickoff. I think they would have signed for that result before the match started. The second half was more balanced, but I didn’t see anything special. Simply, congratulations to Barça.”
On Marcus Rashford’s goal: “You can’t say Courtois could have done more. It’s a great strike in a very tight space. He took a step toward the far post, but you can’t blame him for the goal.”
He also analyzed the second goal, highlighting the gap between the two teams this season: “The second goal shows you the difference between Barcelona and Real Madrid. The players involved in that goal — Dani Olmo and Ferran — probably wouldn’t be starters if everyone else were available. The names aren’t that important here, because they have well-rehearsed patterns and movements from training.”
Kroos sees Arda Güler as a key figure for Real Madrid’s future: “Arda Güler is a player for the future. He’s played a lot this year and will be very important for Madrid. His best position is as a No. 10, close to goal. He has a great final pass, so he needs to be near the forwards and wingers. He’s not a defensive player, so he loses potential in midfield, even though he can build play from deeper.”
