Real Madrid's Toni Kroos says his former Bayern Munich teammate David Alaba is "an outstanding player" but refused to be drawn on speculation linking the Austria international with a move to the Bernabeu.
Alaba has established himself as one of Bayern's leading stars after impressing in a variety of roles under coach Pep Guardiola, leading to reports of interest from Madrid.
Kroos, who left Bayern for Real in 2014, told sportnet.at that he rates Alaba highly.
"David is very good player and he has shown his class both at Bayern and the Austrian national team," the Real midfielder said. "I always got along with him well, but I don't want to comment on transfer speculation."
Asked what he would tell Real president Florentino Perez if he were asked for his opinion on Alaba, Kroos replied: "Of course that I think he's an outstanding player."
Alaba was strongly linked with a move to Madrid in March, but his father later denied a Marca report that he had met with the Spanish club, telling kicker: "That's not true ... David is very happy in Munich."
The 23-year-old is currently contracted to Bayern until 2018, and Bild reported in November that the German champions hope to tie him to an extension.
Alaba has so far remained tight-lipped on his future, but in a recent interview with kicker he said he wants to play in midfield more regularly.