This interview was conducted exclusively in collaboration with Gambling Zone.
While there have been a number of reasons for Real Madrid's problems this season, and a number of views on what they should have done to counter these problems, Toni Kroos' retirement looms large for Los Blancos. On the other hand, Robert Lewandowski, with 22 goals in 20 games this season, seemed to have well exceeded his best from last season, but this year he has enjoyed a renaissance. When exactly is the right time to end it?
Luka Modric is also three years older than Lewandowski and continues to start the majority of games for Los Blancos this season. But he's undoubtedly not the same player he was this time last year. Football España asked Emmanuel Petit when he thought it was the right time to go.
'Can you show me the book that says you should retire at 35 or 36? As long as you are competitive on the pitch and react like the best, I also think of Modric. He played against Liverpool in the Champions League, which shows how difficult it is for Ancelotti to move on. For me it's not about age, of course when you reach a certain point, physically at 35, 36, it becomes more difficult, then you can be included in the progress of the team.”
“But as long as you perform on the field, it's not a matter of age, it's that simple. Look at Salah, he's 32, look at what he's doing in the Premier League. He's turning 33 years old, he's doing great things this year, and I look at the shape of his body, in the last game when he took off his shirt. My first reaction was 'wow, damn, the shape of his body', it's amazing. So I don't think it's a matter of age.”
Petit retired in 2004 after a series of injuries following a three-year spell at Chelsea aged 33. While players are starting to extend their careers much longer, Kroos was only a year older when he called it day, but there are cases like Robert Lewandowski or Luka Modric, who continue at the top level well into their 30s.
Football España asked if it was the mental hunger for the game or the body that dictated the decision in his head.
“I think it's related. When I listened to Kroos… He was tired. He had everything a player could dream of, he had won everything he wanted. He was considered a master of his craft not only in football, but also in Madrid. So I think if he had wanted to sign another one year contract, they would have been happy, and Real Madrid would have played him every game. But I think he was tired mentally and physically, it was probably becoming more and more difficult for him to recover, there is the new format of the Champions League, it is becoming more and more difficult, and you are playing every three days. Even when he left the national team, they asked him to come back.”
“Before he dropped from his level, he decided to retire. I think it was intelligent of him and it shows how much respect he has for football. The easy option for him would be to stay and say: OK, give me €20 million. But he didn't, and that shows his character, which is perhaps a little lacking in the Real Madrid dressing room right now. He could also have gone to Saudi Arabia, for fifty million euros net per season. So I respect the players who have reached the pinnacle of the game, and it is no longer a matter of money. I suppose he could have made a lot more money, but he didn't care.”
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