Real Madrid News
Toni Kroos says he has ‘no mercy’ for Eden Hazard or any other footballer
Eden Hazard has endured a torrid time since his move to Real Madrid in 2019. The Belgian has quickly fallen from one of the best in the business to a mere presence on the bench, and his pitiable decline has seen him recieve sympathy from fans across the globe.
Yet, the story does not appear similar within the Real Madrid dressing room. In their recent interviews with Eleven Belgium ahead of El Clasico, both Toni Kroos and Carlo Ancelotti had harsh words for the Belgian star and refused to extend any sympathy for his situation.
The Merengues‘ manager insisted that he owed no favours to any players in his squad, maintaining that his only role in the team was to win games.
“Hazard? I am not here to give everyone minutes, I am here to win. I don’t look a player’s salary or age. I put a team to win games, nothing else.”
Toni Kroos shared his manager’s views and strongly advocated that the former Chelsea man did not require sympathy for the life he was living. Pity, he insisted, was meant for those in desperate situations.
“Maybe I have no mercy for Hazard but he doesn’t have a bad life or is having a bad time. You can feel sorry for people who have a much worse time [not footballers].”
The 32-year-old Real Madrid reject has only played 102 minutes for the club in La Liga this season and made his last appearance back in January. Carlo Ancelotti clearly does not count on the player with even Marco Asensio and Alvaro Rodriguez being ahead of him in the pecking order.
Hazard’s contract at Santiago Bernabeu runs until the summer of 2024. While Los Blancos wish to ship him out this summer, the forward aims to stay for another season to see out his contract.
Nico Paz was long hyped as Real Madrid Castilla’s brightest upcoming star. The media constantly kept the spotlight on the young Argentine through pre-season as he made a strong impression under Carlo Ancelotti in preseason.
His breakthrough eventually arrived, courtesy of Real Madrid’s injury crisis. He has now made two appearances for the team in La Liga and the UEFA Champions League and even recorded his first goal for the club earlier this week against Napoli.
Taking his chances
As revealed by AS (h/t The Madrid Zone), Paz has impressed management with his cameo against Napoli and will be called up for Real Madrid’s clash against Granada tomorrow.
In fact, there is a good chance he sees significant game time on the night.
After all, Ancelotti is without the likes of Luka Modric, Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga in the middle of the park.
With Toni Kroos, Dani Ceballos, Federico Valverde, and Jude Bellingham filling the starting spots, Paz serves as the manager’s first-choice backup off the bench.
Paz voices his elation
Paz’s introduction against Napoli changed the texture of the game, and it was only poetic that he got the goal that put Real Madrid ahead again on the night.
Speaking to the media after his special night, the Castilla star did not hold back on his emotions.
“This is a dream. For a moment I didn’t even believe it. Very happy to be able to help the team. I dared. I was in automatic mode, I didn’t even know what I was doing. I hit it and well.”
“This is also a message for the other youth players: it is possible to get there. Ancelotti congratulated me, and the whole staff. They are an incredible group and I want to thank them all,” he added, urging his Castilla teammates to keep pushing.
