Toni Kroos has praised the 'incredible' work ethic of Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo, commending the Portuguese international for the amount of time he puts into bettering himself.
Ronaldo has started just one game for Erik ten Hag's side so far this season, which came in the 4-0 thrashing away at Brentford last month. The 37-year-old has since found himself on the substitutes bench in recent weeks, with United winning their last four successive Premier League matches.
The Real Madrid legend was keen on a move away from Old Trafford in the summer in search of Champions League football, however, nothing materialised and he remained a United player as the transfer window shut last week. Despite this, Ronaldo's former teammate Kroos has lauded the six-time Ballon d'Or winner, suggesting that he has 'reached the top' because he is a 'workhorse'.
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"He didn’t reach the top because his name is Cristiano Ronaldo, but because he spends an incredible amount of time working. He is an absolute workhorse and that is the only way to get there," the German midfielder said on the OMR podcast.
Kroos also criticised the Premier League's lack of European success despite huge transfer expenditure. English top-flight clubs spent a combined total of £1.9bn in the summer transfer window — significantly more than the other top five leagues across Europe.
The German international was keen to point out that the sustained spending did not lead to an English club enjoying success in Europe last season, with Madrid overcoming Liverpool in the most recent Champions League final in May.
"The Premier League has not won an international title this year," said Kroos.
"Television money has been significantly higher in England for years and yet it hasn't resulted in English teams winning everything. Thank God not all players look only at salary but also at winning."
According to Transfermarkt, Ronaldo and Kroos played together 170 times at Real Madrid, with the pair combining for 16 goals during their time in Madrid.
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