Kroos: Araujo is more suitable to play for Real Madrid than Garcia, and it was a mistake not to sign a central defender to replace Inigo

Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 2-1 in this round of La Liga focus. When the famous Kroos talked about this game on his personal podcast, he questioned Flick's selection of the national derby, especially the choice of central defender.

Due to the suspension, Flick, who was under the on-the-spot command of assistant coach Marcus Zog, chose Pau Kubasi and Eric Garcia to partner as central defenders. Kroos made it clear that he would never let the latter enter the starting lineup.

"What I can’t understand is why you choose Garcia, who has slightly better foot skills than Araujo. And Araujo has the physical fitness to allow you to continue chasing after high-pressure defense - he is an excellent candidate to deal with this kind of tactical play and opponents," Cross said in his podcast.

The Real Madrid legend added: "When you face Mbappe and Vinicius, you need a defender who can keep up with the speed. Araujo can do this, this arrangement surprised me." In fact, Barcelona was really helpless against Real Madrid's speed in the game, and the defensive end was full of loopholes.

Kroos believes that Barcelona has obvious problems at the central defender position, and linked this to the departure of a player who was ignored by public opinion-Inigo Martinez left Barcelona in August and is now teammates with Ronaldo and Mane in Victory in Riyadh. The 34-year-old veteran was still a regular starter under Flick last season.

"I emphasized the importance of Inigo Martinez at the time. He had the best organizational ability among all central defenders in Barcelona last year. Although his speed is not dominant, his confrontation ability is top-notch and his ball play is stable. Against Real Madrid, when Real Madrid put pressure on them, they obviously lacked such a player. The club did not introduce a replacement, and now they pay the price for it," Cross said.

However, the Real Madrid legend also defended Barcelona's performance in the El Clasico: "To be fair, Barcelona does have an incomplete lineup - from the goalkeeper position to the coaching bench." Cross also cited the absence of Rafinha, Dani Olmo and Lewandowski.