Chapter 2183 - 561: A Graduate Student Love Story (Part 1)
The reporters were too excited.
A minute ago, they never thought they would see Kroos at the press conference today.
The restless reporters fired questions frantically.
"Why is Kroos attending the press conference?"
"What happened with Kevin’s foul today?"
"Mr. Maldini, how does it feel to lift the Serie A championship trophy again?"
"Toni, what are your thoughts on today’s game? The referee didn’t card Kevin but did for Cazorla, is there a problem there?"
"Facing your old club Bayern in the Champions League, what do you have to say?"
Cesare Maldini and Toni Kroos sat down.
Old Maldini immediately gestured downwards with his hand to signal the reporters to quiet down.
The venue of today’s press conference was too noisy.
After waiting for several seconds, when the noise subsided significantly, he pulled the microphone closer and said, "It is a magical night, I’m so grateful to the entire AC Milan Club, and to our captain Kevin. I don’t know when my life will end, but this title, the previous Coppa Italia title, and the potential Champions League Trophy hold great significance for me."
"Who do you think had a more successful career, you or Paol Maldini?" a British person asked.
"If we are talking about a player’s career, definitely Paol, but if it’s about a coaching career, then it’s me."
Cesare Maldini said playfully with a wink.
His son Paul never even coached.
"What about Kevin’s foul today? It’s said Cazorla’s condition is not good."
A reporter pressed on.
"Firstly, that was not a foul, I was far away, and I could see clearly, the referee saw it clearer, he said it wasn’t a foul, and I don’t think it was either."
Cesare Maldini said.
Stefano Colantuono did not refute.
Cesare Maldini’s attitude left the reporters very disgruntled.
This veteran wouldn’t give them a single chance.
The reporters immediately turned their attention to Kroos.
"Toni, you also think that wasn’t a foul?"
A reporter asked.
"Of course not!"
Toni Kroos said, "The coach has made it very clear, the referee has already made the call, and yet you have issues with the call. It was a dive, a dive! I swear on my life, Kevin would never tackle someone on purpose, let alone tackle from behind, but dives can sometimes hurt oneself too, it was a poor performance, if he were from Barcelona, this wouldn’t have happened."
Rumble——
Sure enough, it’s Kroos!
The reporters immediately perked up.
"Toni, are you saying Barça players are good at diving?"
"Toni, what do you mean by that?"
"Tell us about Barcelona."
Toni Kroos was very satisfied with the reporters’ reactions.
He smiled as he spoke, "You’ve probably seen Busquets’ performance, Alves is also good at diving, that’s just how Barça players are."
"What about Messi, he’s also a Barça youth player."
A reporter pressed on.
Old Maldini’s face even showed a hint of nervousness.
Kroos’s next answer might lead to locker room conflict.
Kroos said, "I am sure Leon is not a player who likes to dive, if he did that while at Barça, I mean if, I don’t remember him doing so, but if he did, it must have been the coach’s plan."
"Guardiola was Messi’s coach before."
A reporter reminded him.
Kroos felt numb.
His mouth was too quick, he forgot about this.
He coughed twice to cover his embarrassment and said, "I meant an earlier coach, Rijkaard, yes, it’s him, I’ve never liked Rijkaard’s coaching style."
Cesare Maldini closed his eyes.
He finally understood why Guardiola feared Kroos attending the press conference.
He’s only answered two questions and has already offended Barça and Rijkaard.
A coach with a heart condition might have gone straight to the hospital.
Fortunately, he prepared himself psychologically and anticipated such situations, so he didn’t have a big reaction.
"Why do you not like Rijkaard?"
A reporter asked persistently.
"Dislike is just dislike, is there a rule that I must like him?" Kroos said unhappily: "Mr. Guardiola is a better coach."
"And how about Mr. Cesare Maldini compared to Mr. Guardiola?"
The reporters didn’t let go.
Kroos recalled watching Huang Kaiwen’s press conference.
He mimicked, "They are completely different styles, just like you can’t ask me to say who among Samuel and Müller is better. However, both Mr. Maldini and Mr. Guardiola are top coaches, they have greatly helped me."
"And compared to Bayern’s Heynckes?"
A reporter asked.
"I’m not too sure, top-level coaches should be about the same."
Kroos said.
He transferred to Milan too early and had no connection with Heynckes.
"What about Bayern, is it similar to Milan?"
A German reporter asked.
Kroos rolled his eyes and said, "The Bundesliga has no competition whatsoever, but Serie A is the best league in the world, we outranked Juventus and Inter Milan, swept various giants in the Champions League, Bayern simply can’t achieve that, how could it compare to Milan? Only Milan ranks a level above worldwide, as Europe’s top giants, others are just giants."
The reporters’ faces were full of excitement.
Look.
This is the kind of player they like.
Kroos answered a few questions today, enough for them to write about for a month.