Daily Times

BERLIN: Germany midfielder Toni Kroos said Friday he was retiring from international football, days after the team was knocked out of Euro 2020 by England. “I have played 106 times for Germany. There will not be another time,” the 31-year-old Real Madrid star wrote on Twitter. “I had already made the decision to retire after this tournament,” he added, referring to the European championships which ended for the Germans when they lost 2-0 to England in the last 16 on Tuesday at Wembley. “It had been clear to me for a while that I will not be available for the World Cup 2022 in Qatar.” Kroos said he planned in the next years to place his “full concentration” on Real Madrid. Thanking supporters and critics alike, Kroos also had special words for Joachim Loew, who bowed out as national coach on Tuesday following 15 years in the job. Kroos said he had considered retiring after Germany’s disastrous 2018 World Cup campaign in Russia, when they finished last in their group, but Loew talked him out of it. There had been calls to drop Kroos during Euro 2020 after below-par performances in the group stages.