Toni Kroos announces his retirement from international football following Euro 2020 exit
2014 World Cup winner Toni Kroos has announced his retirement from international football in a statement released on his various social media pages. The 31-year-old has spent the last eleven years playing for Die Mannschaft with him earning 106 caps in the process for Joachim Low’s side.
Despite this being Joachim Low’s last international tournament as the Germany head coach, few expected Die Mannschaft to lose any players with more than a few in their prime. That is despite call-backs for Mats Hummels and Thomas Muller although with the Germans losing to England in the round of 16 at Euro 2020, it did bring an end to Low’s tenure as coach.
But, in what has come as a shock to many, Toni Kroos has brought down the curtains on his time with Germany as the 31-year-old announced his retirement from international football. In a statement, released across his social media channels, the Real Marid midfielder confirmed the news and admitted that he made the decision to retire after Euro 2020 a long-time ago. He also added that he wants to concentrate on Real Madrid and help the La Liga giants thrive going forward.
"I've played for Germany 106 times. There won't be another time. I would have dearly wished, and I gave everything again, that there would have been 109 internationals in the end and that this one big title, the European Championship, would have been added at the end,” Kroos said on his social media channels.
"I had made the decision to quit after this tournament for a long time. It had been clear to me for a long time that I would not be available for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Mainly because I want to focus fully on my goals with Real Madrid for the next few years. In addition, from now on I will deliberately allow myself breaks that have not existed as a national player for eleven years.
"And moreover, as a husband and dad, I would also like to be there for my wife and three children. It was a great honour for me to be able to wear this jersey for such a long period of time. I did it with pride and passion," he added.
— Toni Kroos (@ToniKroos)
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