Toni Kroos responds after being booed by Saudi fans
Riyadh fans whistled and booed Toni Kroos during Real Madrid's win over Atletico in the Spanish Super Cup semi-final, to which the player responded ironically on social media.
Toni Kroos was a substitute for Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup semi-final derby, but he made his presence felt when he came on. Not just in terms of the game, but in terms of the crowd's reaction to his entrance. The fans in Riyadh did not forgive him for his criticism of the Saudi Arabian regime and unleashed a barrage of boos and jeers.
The player himself responded via social media, although he did so with his characteristic curious acid humour. After the end of the match, possibly still in the dressing room, he wrote: "Today was fun! Amazing crowd" He accompanied it with an emoji with hearts in his eyes.
"You can't expect people to respect you when you speak against them publicly" or "if you don't show us respect you will be insulted" were some of the more polite responses Kroos received from more Saudi fans on his tweet. The Real Madrid midfielder has repeatedly said he would not play in the Saudi Pro League.
The most talked about was in 'Sports Ilustrated', where he said he would not follow the path of players like Cristiano Ronaldo or Karim Benzema. "The lack of human rights is what would prevent me from going there," he replied. "It becomes very difficult when players who are in the middle of their careers, and have enough quality to be at the best clubs in Europe, decide to accept those transfers. That's when it starts to become difficult for the sport we all love," he added.