Real Madrid News: Kroos opens up about Lopetegui, Marcelo on Juventus rumours and more – 24th October 2018
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#1 Toni Kroos backs Lopetegui
Julen Lopetegui's job at Real Madrid is hanging in the balance and the manager needs the support of his players more than ever right now. The players are now speaking openly in the media about the possible sacking of the manager and are showing faith in him.
Kroos is the latest to join the list of players backing Lopetegui. The German said, “We want Lopetegui to stay. He’s a good coach. That’s my opinion.”
“Not everything is going well for us but the team won. We are creating chances and doing everything we can to get good results. I’m sure we will turn things around and bounce back under Lopetegui,” added the midfielder.
#2 5 managers rejected Real Madrid
Reports in AS suggest that Julen Lopetegui was not Real Madrid's first choice in the summer. The manager was actually their SIXTH choice after they were rebuffed by 5 managers.
Perez's first choice was reportedly Tottenham's Mauricio Pochettino but they did not make a move for him as they did not want to tarnish their relationship with Tottenham. Juventus's Allegri then rejected them stating that he wanted to stay in Turin until he lifted the Champions League trophy.
Los Blancos them approached Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp who swiftly rejected the offer before Antonio Conte declined the offer as well, despite just getting fired by Chelsea. Julian Nagelsmann was the final manager to reject Madrid before the Spanish giants made a move for Lopetegui.
#3 Marcelo dismisses Juventus links
Rumours of Marcelo leaving Real Madrid have been going around for months now. They initially started after Cristiano Ronaldo joined Juventus with talks of him convincing the left-back to move with him spread like wildfire.
The Brazilian has now put an end to all the rumours and stated that he does not have any offers on the table nor is he looking to move. “Leaving Madrid? I haven’t heard about any offers,” he said.
“No-one’s more of a ‘Madridista’ than I am,” added Marcelo.