Former Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos has insisted Hansi Flick‘s strict punctuality would’ve been laughed at in the Spanish capital due to a difference in mentality.
Barcelona manager Flick enjoyed a remarkable debut season in La Liga, guiding La Blaugrana to three domestic trophies, including the league title, after Xavi oversaw a tumultuous 2023–24 campaign.
The German coach’s high-risk principles saw Barcelona defend with a mightily aggressive defensive line, and while their lack of maturity ultimately led to a dramatic Champions League semifinal exit, there’s no denying the success of Flick’s first season at the helm.
Off the back of a pretty wretched campaign, key to Flick’s success upon arrival was the immediate installation of discipline within his squad, and the former Bayern Munich boss was, by all accounts, a real stickler for punctuality. Jules Koundé and Iñaki Peña were both dropped for matches earlier this year due to lateness.
In a recent podcast episode hosted by the Kroos brothers, Toni made note of the aforementioned episodes at Barça involving Koundé and Peña and explained that such strict discipline was never imposed during his time at Real Madrid.
“They’re different philosophies,” Kroos said. “At Real Madrid, they would have laughed. Many times you didn”t know who was late, the player or the coach. It’s a different mentality, not letting someone play because they’re five minutes late to a meeting.”
Kroos spent much of his career in the Spanish capital playing under a pair of laissez-faire, relaxed coaches in Carlo Ancelotti and Zinedine Zidane, who both oversaw plenty of success during their respective spells as manager. He, of course, knows Flick from his time spent with the German national team.
Kroos insisted that the Barcelona manager’s more authoritarian approach and the leadership styles of the aforementioned Madrid pair are both “fine” and noted that Flick’s is the ”typical German mentality.”
With Los Blancos in need to rebound next year after a disappointing 2024–25 season, it’ll be interesting to see where Xabi Alonso lies as a disciplinarian.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Different Mentality’—Toni Kroos Claims Real Madrid Would ‘Laugh’ at Hansi Flick.
