Real Madrid’s Toni Kroos details bout with injury that affected him during Euros and required painkillers to stay on the pitch

Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos detailed his recent injury struggles and how he had been using painkillers for the last six months to help keep him on the pitch.

The former Bayern Munich and German national team star, who has not played since the Euros, explained what he has been dealing with.

“I’m happy because today I was able to do my third training session with the team without being in pain after six or seven months with pain, so it’s a very good feeling,” Kroos told Goal. “I have not played in three months, the last game was on June 29, at the European Championship, so I have to gain a little rhythm. But the most important thing is that it doesn’t bother me much. From now on we can start talking about the games.”

Kroos went further and gave the timeline of when his issues started.

“I started feeling discomfort in March or so and knew there was something in my groin. From there I knew that if I continued playing I would get to the point of not being able to anymore, but it was very difficult to stop because I had to play the quarterfinals and the semi-finals of the Champions League, then the European Championship,” Kroos said.

While he has always favored conservative treatment for injuries, Kroos admitted he needed to use painkillers to play through the discomfort.

“It was not an option to have an operation or something like that, I have not thought about this because I always prefer, if there is no other way, to do it with conservative treatment, which has always helped me,” Kroos said. “This has lasted a little longer, it’s true, but I have played six months with pain, or not with pain but with a lot of pills and between games with a lot of pain. I knew it would last a little longer now.”