“Thought about tying Kroos’ feet, but I don’t know if UEFA will let me” - Spain boss makes hilarious claim ahead of Euro 2024 QF with Germany
Spain boss Luis de la Fuente has joked that UEFA won't allow him to tie Germany midfielder Toni Kroos' legs as the two behemoths go to battle in the UEFA Euro 2024 quarter-finals in Stuttgart on Friday (July 5). Kroos is playing his last tournament before retiring.
Nevertheless, the 34-year-old legendary midfielder - back in the international fold after initially retiring after Euro 2020 - has been key at the heart of the German midfield. Julian Nagelsmann's side have reached the last-eight after topping their group and beating Denmark 2-0 in the Round of 16.
Meanwhile, La Roja topped a group containing defending champions Italy and 2018 FIFA World Cup finalists Croatia before trumping Georgia 4-1 to set up a Euro 2008 final rematch with Die National Mannschaft.
Previewing the heavyweight clash, De la Fuente said about Kroos (as per From the Spot):
“Kroos is world-class, a footballer of a brutal level. Football doesn’t leave these players. They leave football. The confidence that he transmits has been very good for Germany. It is a pity that he wanted to leave football because I would love to continue watching him play.
About how he would look to counter Kroos, the Spain boss joked ahead of the Euro 2024 clash:
“We had thought about tying Kroos’ feet, but I don’t know if UEFA will let me. We know what Kroos is like. We’ll try to make sure he doesn’t have a chance to receive easily and limit his passing options. We’ll appeal to UEFA to see if they’ll let us tie him down."
Spain and Germany are meeting in the European Championships for the first time since that aforementioned Euro 2008 final, where La Roja had prevailed by a solitary goal, thanks to Fernando Torres' first-half winner.
"It will be a very special game for him" - Spain's Dani Carvajal on Germany's Toni Kroos ahead of Euro 2024 clash
Spain defender Dani Carvajal - who was teammates with Kroos at Real Madrid for a decade - has also waxed lyrical about the German midfield maestro before their Euro 2024 clash.
Adding that Spain would look to limit Kroos as they seek a place in the Euro 2024 semi-finals, Carvajal said that he would talk with his former club teammate after the game:
“I have not spoken to him, I’m waiting for tomorrow. As the coach said, I wish we could tie him down. It will be a very special game for him.”
Kroos and Carvajal won four UEFA Champions League titles together at the Santiago Bernabeu, with the most recent one coming last season.