Has Toni Kroos been offered a Real Madrid contract extension?

Toni Kroos may be planning to leave Real Madrid in 2023 as a free agent when his contract expires, according to reports in Spain. The Germany international has reportedly turned down a contract extension from the Bernabéu hierarchy and has announced he would prefer to see what transpires over the course of the 2022-23 campaign before making a decision on whether to continue at the club.

Cadena SER reported that while Madrid were taken aback by Kroos’ decision not to extend his contract this summer, the club respects his stance. The midfielder, 32, has said on several occasions that any new deal would depend on how he feels and what he can still offer Carlo Ancelotti’s side on the pitch. Far from eyeing a succulent final contract elsewhere as a free agent though, SER said that Kroos’ primary concern was not to become a financial burden on Real Madrid having arrived for what is now is clearly a bargain fee of €25 million from Bayern Munich in 2014.

Ancelotti’s squad has been reinforced in the midfield positions twice over the past two summers, with the arrival of Eduardo Camavinga in 2021 and his international teammate Aurélien Tchouaméni last week. Both are young players with long careers ahead of them and both fit the profile that Florentino Pérez is envisaging for the team over the coming years: more energy, physicality and mobility. Fede Valverde was also recently renewed by another two years, from 2025 to 2027, making Madrid’s future midfield secure. Luka Modric, 36, has signed a one-year extension.

Kroos to wait and see how Madrid’s new midfield shapes up

Kroos retired from international duty last summer after the Euros and enjoyed a successful season at Madrid, winning the Champions League and LaLiga, but he suffered a pubis issue that caused him to miss the opening eight games of the season and he gradually saw his pitch time reduced as Camavinga and Valverde were handed more minutes by Ancelotti. Still, he made 45 appearances overall but was visibly angry when substituted at 2-0 down against Chelsea in the Champions League after 72 minutes.

Whatever Kroos decides to do in the future, Madrid and Ancelotti still highly value the player and will respect whatever plans he has at the end of the 2022-23 campaign. A lot will depend on his participation. Camavinga and Valverde are pushing for starting places and while Tchouaméni will require some bedding-in time, it seems unlikely that a €100m acquisition will spend too much on the bench next season.