German midfielder Toni Kroos has been tipped to announce his retirement from international football in the wake of Die Mannschaften’s Euro 2020 elimination from England.
The Real Madrid star has played 106 times for Germany since making his debut in March 2010, with the 2014 World Cup victory as the crowning achievement of a famous international career.
31-year-old Kroos has been to three World Cups in total, with Euro 2020 now his third European Championship. But with the German national attitude now at a crossroads with Hansi Flick set to come in and a number of younger players in the squad, part of the older guard can resign.
Bild reports that Kroos, who was powerless to prevent a poor Germany from leaving the 2018 World Cup in the group stage, was already considering his international future before Euro 2020 and will now assess the situation again after an early exit in the 16s.
Kroos has played 106 times for Germany and won the World Cup 2014 / Alexander Hassenstein / Getty Images
It is despite the lid from the WC 2022 on the horizon. The finals in Qatar are now just over a year away and much closer than a regular tournament bike.
But he is not the only leading member of the squad considering international retirement.
Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan is apparently another. The 30-year-old was dropped for the England match and had played fewer minutes for each match that passed during the group stage. After being one of the Premier League’s excellent players last season, he is considered frustrated by questions about whether there is room for him and can quit on his own terms.
Thomas Muller, 31, and Mats Hummels, 32, are two others that Bild is tipping to potentially now also consider international pensions.
Thomas Muller can also consider his international future / Markus Gilliar / Getty Images
Muller in particular is a veteran of the 2010 World Cup, where he scored five goals to win the Golden Boot at the age of 20. He was left famous by the national team by Joachim Low for two and a half years after the 2018 World Cup but was recalled for this tournament.
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