ZZ: I asked Kroos if he wanted to come out but he told me he wanted to finish the game. The plan was to rest him towards the end....

Still irresponsible though. If Kroos went out with an injury, then that excuse would have looked a lot more silly than it is.

Maybe....  just maybe...  Zidane is making a point to management that he needs cover for Kroos.  Maybe...  just maybe...  Zidane was ignored in the summer in his demands for certain key positions.  So with this mercato coming where we may be able to transact (TAS may suspend sanctions until they render a decision), Zidane wants to make sure that he illustrates our needs.  

It's risky.  Kroos may have gotten injured.  But this was a Segunda B team so I'm sure Kroos didn't need to play anywhere near 100% intensity... so for the sake of getting his message across, it may have been worth the risk to Zidane.

I heard a rumor that Zidane feels that Real Madrid are dead in the water if Casemiro isn't ready for the big games and he's forced to play Kroos or anyone else in that role.  I mean absolutely dead.... as in little to no chance to win.  So he wants to make absolutely sure that the direness of the situation is clear to management.

Why?  Casemiro's stress fracture hasn't even healed yet.  It's better... but there's still a fracture.  He is currently restricted to swimming, weights and physiotherapy.  Can't even jog yet, let alone run and touch a football.  Btw, I think it's shameful that Brazil called him up to test his fitness independently.  Again, Casemiro is forced to go and Real Madrid are forced to let him go.  But in this case, it should have been waived.  The dude isn't even cleared to do field work yet.  What's there to check?

Other issue is that a stress fracture is tricky. If you bring a player back too early, it fractures again. I don't really trust Real Madrid's medical staff on these sorts of judgement calls tbh.

Anyhow, go ahead and tear me apart as I'm sure you will lol.

But maybe, Zidane didn't ask for the backup DM in the first place!!!!

Come on, overplaying someone to show management what they need to do!!

Your still going to great lengths to drive your agenda!!!

Cut your nose to spite your face hardly works out positively. If that is Zidane's strategy, that is not only irresponsible but quite reckless.

If that is what he needed to do then the upper hierarchy of Real Madrid is the same.

Of course, if what you say is a "maybe" Sports then you gotta take into consideration that Zidane maybe never asked for a back up. In any case, Madrid just looks dumb for not having one.

Let's just say that Flo is easily enamored with the concept that you can teach proper positional defense to gifted attacking players... but you can't teach defensive players good technique as it is god given.  He's had this ridiculous belief since FOREVER.  He won't give up on it.

Somehow James, Kovacic, Isco and Kroos can play proper defense as CMs.

In the face of that kind of stubbornness that has held steady despite irrefutable data to the contrary... what would you do? Maybe you need to take drastic, maybe even irresponsible measures, to try and break the cycle?

Zidane is neither stupid nor suicidal. Do you really think he did this just on a whim?

Ok that's it, I give up. Some people will never change and I don't think it's worth the effort anymore to disprove their baseless theories every time they come up with one.

Not going to point you out by name, I still respect you as a human being, but as far as credibility goes, you've lost whatever you had left as far as I'm concerned.

I'll just make sure not to read your posts anymore. God bless.

I'm aware of Perez's issue with defensive midfielders which he personally should explain in his memoirs one day. Just so odd and weird.

However, I don't consider Zidane neither stupid or suicidal. Don't know him other than what I see via matches. I do know that, for the lack of a less harsh word, sabotaging your team for a cause doesn't have the positive effect people tend to do want to achieve.

In any case, we really do need a damn back up. Watching Kroos do donkey work is just, no bueno.

Wasn't really sabotaging though...  Kroos could play at probably no more that 50% effort against a Segunda B team and it would be fine.  Calculated risk (I wouldn't do it but whatever; I completely agree with you there; I'm just pointing out that it's not a lazy/negligent decision; there is a purpose).  If you're not really pushing limits on any play, the chance of injuries are very very very low.  Could happen though.

The risk isn't the part that stands out to me...  it's the shock factor of having him out there for 90 mins against a Segunda B team because the manager feels there is no viable alternative on the bench.  Kroos has played 88% of all Real Madrid minutes this season according to Marca.

And it's not like Carlo who just won't rest players period.  ZZ rested BBC, Varane, Carvajal and Marcelo.  So maybe there's something more to it?

I don't know if I would go so far as to say there was something more to it in that instance but I do feel that there are some real decision makers at Real Madrid that are not seeing eye to eye in a big way.

Nothing conclusive or factual, just a feeling I have.