There was a moment in the game early in the first half when Bayern Munich seemed to have come out swinging and caught Real Madrid off guard. The Bayern press was unsettling Madrid players, and the hosts were having repeated attempts at goal. Then came a moment of magic, a moment of absolute genius from Toni Kroos. The German had the ball just past the halfway line and completely foxed the hosts’ defence by slotting a through ball to Vinicius Jr. who, inevitably, buried his opportunity past Manuel Neuer.
The finish was deadly, but the pass was out of this world. Perhaps nobody in the game could have hit that pass in a pressurised situation like a UEFA Champions League semifinal, especially when his team were under the cosh. Toni Kroos did something that Toni Kroos always did and continues to do. The pass sliced open the Munich backline like a hot knife through butter. The offside trap was completely deceived and unprepared.
Toni Kroos started his career as an advanced midfielder and that stint reached its peak under Jupp Heynckes and subsequently Pep Guardiola between 2012-2014. The midfielders chalked up impressive numbers as well as he had 17 G/A during the 2012-13 treble-winning season for Bayern. Eventually, he got his move to Real Madrid for a fee of less than €30 million which was a steal then and is looking like a daylight robbery now. This move went under the radar as James Rodriguez earned a move to Real Madrid as well from AS Monaco after lighting up the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
During the 2014-15 season, Carlo Ancelotti primarily played Kroos out of position, deciding to use him as the holding midfielder to accommodate two of Isco, Luka Modric, and James Rodriguez. Ancelotti would pay the price for this as Madrid lost out on La Liga to FC Barcelona by two points and crashed out of the Champions League at home to Juventus. Kroos being deployed as a DM was exploited by the opposition.
In comes Rafa Benitez and one of the very few good things the Spaniard did at Madrid was bring in Casemiro from Porto. This freed up Kroos to control the game without worrying about the responsibilities that come as the only holding defensive midfielder in the team. What ensued was performances of historical significance. What ensued was the most dominant period in European football in modern history as Real Madrid three-peated the Champions League when not a single club since the 80s had managed to defend the title, let alone win three in a row.
In the meantime, his international career was just as remarkable. Toni Kroos was pivotal in Germany’s 2014 FIFA World Cup win in Brazil. Kroos had 5 G/A in the tournament. This was capped off with the remarkable semifinal performance against hosts Brazil as Kroos scored two goals on the night and provided an assist in what was perhaps the greatest performance by a team in a World Cup.
Fast forward four years, and at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, it was once again Toni Kroos keeping the German hopes alive of defending the Jules Rimet trophy. The German midfielder produced one of the great performances of the tournament against Sweden in the group stages as Germany needed to win that game to keep their hopes alive. This performance was polished with an incredible free kick in the dying embers of the game that secured the win for Die Mannschaft.
On this day in 2018, in the 95th minute of Germany vs. Sweden, Toni Kroos stepped up to take a free kick from wide.
(🎥: @FIFAWorldCup)pic.twitter.com/M8axZ3gtDh
— B/R Football (@brfootball) June 23, 2021
What do the underlying numbers say about Toni Kroos?
Kroos just kept getting better and better, and so did his output and not just the underlying numbers. The German recorded 20 G/A in all competitions during the 2016/17 season. His corners became more lethal as the combination of Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos, inarguably the two greatest headers of the ball, got on the end of Kroos’ teasing deliveries into the box.
Xavi is widely considered to be the greatest midfielder of all time when it comes to controlling the game. Toni Kroos surpassed him during that incredible stretch. Xavi has even acknowledged the greatness of the German midfielder and considers him his successor:
Kroos is the engine of Real Madrid. He has a way of playing that reminds me a lot of myself. He is like my successor on the field.
Then came the misplaced criticism of fans and pundits as they simplified Toni Kroos’ game down to sideways passes and backward passes. At that point, the underlying statistics told a completely different story. Kevin De Bruyne during the 2017-18 season completed 388 progressive passes. Kroos that season completed 274 progressive passes.
One plays as the creator-in-chief for his team while the latter controls the tempo of the game. Two seasons later, those numbers got even better. Kroos had 298 progressive passes in all competitions. KDB had 280. Last season, this number reached 319. The naysayers didn’t have much to say anymore.
Passes attempted and pass completion are the statistic where the German maestro completely pulls away from his contemporaries. This season in La Liga, Kroos has completed 94.5% (read that again) with at least 92 passes completed per 90 minutes. In Europe and amongst the elite in world football, Kroos completes over 95% of his passes. Kroos control is often the term used to describe Real Madrid and it makes perfect sense.
As far as long balls are concerned, Kroos has completed 205 long balls this season as the switch play in Madrid is as potent as ever. Just to put that into perspective, Rodri and Bruno Fernandes in the Premier League are the only players with more – 274 and 254 respectively. Both of them have started at least eight games more than the German maestro.
And what is scary about Kroos is that he hasn’t finished yet. The midfielder is just 34 years old and could easily play another three or four years if he chooses to. But that isn’t Toni Kroos’ style. He comes across as a person who wants to retire at the top of his game rather than play until the wheels fall off.
Kroos is very secure in his legacy and doesn’t care what other people think about him or his mark left in the game. That is an extremely admirable characteristic and hence, Kroos only extends his deal one year at a time. He has always said that he wants to retire in the capital city of Spain, playing for the 14-time European champions.
And if he maintains this level of performance and output combined with his longevity, forget Steven Gerrard and Zinedine Zidane, Toni Kroos might end up as the greatest midfielder of all time.
