Real Madrid legend Toni Kroos makes Lionel Messi claim

Toni Kroos and Lionel Messi have come up against one another several times at club and international level. In fact, the Real Madrid midfielder was in the Germany national team which denied the Argentine the chance of lifting the World Cup on Brazilian soil back in 2014.

Messi has finally gotten his hands on the biggest prize in football, at 35 year of age, with Argentina defeating France in the final of the 2022 World Cup. And in the eyes of a lot of fans, that has made him the greatest player in the history of the game.

While that debate will always continue on, it is safe to say that World Cup win has strengthened Messi’s claim significantly and Kroos had some very positive things to say about his old El Clasico rival.

As reported by the Mirror, while speaking after the World Cup, Kroos said on German platform MagentaTV:

"“He (Messi) deserves it. In terms of individual performances in a championship, I’ve never seen a footballer play as regularly as this guy. You have to take into account that he has never played for clubs that I find very funny, something that proves that I mean it.”"

Real Madrid legend Kroos makes Messi claim as Argentine lifts World Cup

This was Messi’s fifth attempt to win the World Cup, and the stars finally aligned for the Argentine this time around. He had a stunning individual performance at the tournament as well, scoring 7 goals and providing 3 assists, winning himself the Golden Ball and falling just short of the Golden Boot.

On the other hand though, one cannot forget that the final brought heartbreak for a couple of Real Madrid youngsters in Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga.

Both featured on the day and Tchouameni even ended up missing a vital spot kick, as Argentina won on penalties. He does seem to be the type of player who will take this experience to only get better in the future.

Both of them should return to Madrid will their heads held high though. Finishing runners up at the World Cup is no joke either, and they surely have a bright future ahead at both club and international level.