The former Real Madrid midfielder believes that pushback against Rudiger has been overblown
Toni Kroos has publicly defended his former Real Madrid teammate Antonio Rudiger following the German defender’s controversial red card during the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona.
Rudiger, who had been substituted earlier, was sent off in the final minutes of extra time for throwing an object towards referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea and verbally abusing him.
Speaking at an Icon League event in Dusseldorf, Kroos acknowledged Rudiger’s misconduct but cautioned against overreaction.
“He will receive his punishment, but we also don’t have to act as if he killed someone,” said the 35-year-old. “We have to be careful not to always go with the flow.”
The six-time Champions League winner revealed he had spoken with Rudiger after the incident and confirmed that the defender is aware of his mistake.
“It was a big mistake, I think the images speak for themselves. He knows it too, he’s aware of it,” Kroos said.
The incident recently sparked debate in Germany, with regular Germans as well as former international players like Lothar Matthaus, Dietmar Hamann and Mario Basler calling for Rudiger’s exclusion from the national team. An online poll involving 18,000 people saw over 78 per cent saying that the defender should not be allowed to play for Germany again.
However, Kroos defended Rudiger against these demands: “Those who are now coming out of the woodwork to demand his exclusion from the national team, some of them are people who, let’s put it this way, would have also deserved to be banned in their time.”
