Leverkusen want to keep Kroos
Bayer Leverkusen general manager Wolfgang Holzhauser has revealed
they are eager to make Toni Kroos' loan move from Bayern Munich
permanent in the summer, even though Bayern are keen on the Germany
international's return.
Kroos has been in startling form for Leverkusen this season,
scoring nine goals in 24 Bundesliga games so far this campaign.
This has earned him a call to the Germany national team for
next week's international friendly against Argentina when Kroos
will return to Munich's Allianz Arena.
However, Leverkusen hope he will only be back in Bavaria on a
temporary basis.
"Toni would like to stay with us and we would like to keep
him," Holzhauser told German daily Bild.
"There are two options: either we loan him out for another
year, or else we want to buy him outright."
Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge recently affirmed that
Kroos would "100% certainly" return to Munich in the summer.
Yet Bayer director of sport Rudi Voller still hopes to
convince him otherwise.
"We still have a bit of hope that we could still keep hold of
him," he told DSF television yesterday.
"We would like to carry on with him, but if we can't do so,
then we will obviously accept the agreement we reached with Bayern.
"Toni Kroos is certainly going to hold talks with the Bayern
management soon."