“I instantly realised that he was a good guy” – Toni Kroos recollects watching ‘very silent and humble’ Real Madrid star in pre-season back in 2018/19

Real Madrid star Toni Kroos recently shared his first impression of Federico 'Fede' Valverde during the pre-season for the 2018-19 campaign.

Kroos and Valverde have been partners in Los Blancos' midfield for a while now. They compliment each other in an effective way on the pitch.

While speaking on the Just Loups podcast, Kroos recently revealed his first impression of the Uruguay international. The 2014 FIFA World Cup winner described Valverde as a humble person, saying:

“I remember him being with us for the first time during our 18-19 pre-season tour in the USA. Our physio asked me to look a bit after him cause he told me I was his idol. I instantly realised that he was a good guy. Very silent and humble."

Valverde has been one of the standout players for the Spanish club this season. In 16 games so far this season, he has scored seven goals and provided two assists.

He joined the club back in 2018 and has since made 164 appearances, scoring 13 goals and providing ten assists.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said earlier this season that Valverde would have to score at least ten goals this season or he would retire as a coach. The Italian said (via Football Espana):

“He has to have that responsibility, we have bet. I think he will score more than ten this season. He is in an extraordinary dynamics. When I put him out wide he does well, inside too. He is a very important player for us. The energy he has is incredible. He has to score ten.”

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Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti talks about improvements to make after recent loss

RB Leipzig v Real Madrid: Group F - UEFA Champions League

Real Madrid suffered their first loss of the campaign when they were defeated by RB Leipzig on October 26 by a scoreline of 3-2 in the UEFA Champions League. Carlo Ancelotti said that defeat teaches lessons more than consecutive wins in a row.

The Italian manager said after the game (via realmadrid.com):

“You learn more from a defeat than from ten straight wins. We'll focus on the things we didn't do very well. We didn't defend set-pieces very well, that's where we conceded two goals. We're generally much better but these things happen.

"We didn't deliver the performance we hoped for. It was best to sit with a low block and hit them on the counter but it went exactly opposite to how we'd planned. We conceded twice and we should have played it differently".

Despite their defeat, Real Madrid sit atop Group F of the Champions League with 10 points, with Leipzig in second with nine points. They are in the top position in La Liga as well.