Toni Kroos has already celebrated countless goals in his more than 400 appearances for Real Madrid. So it’s understandable that his team’s winning goal by Karim Benzema to make it 1-0 in the 78th minute against Liverpool on Tuesday evening in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 no longer aroused any particular emotions in him. After the native of Greifswald briefly stretched his arms in the air, he was the only field player not to celebrate the goal with his teammates.
Instead, Kroos ran to the touchline to use the break in play as a breather. He was then substituted by coach Carlo Ancelotti to applause from the crowd at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu. In doing so, he signaled to his team and to the rest of the footballing world that Real would reach the quarterfinals of this competition for the eleventh time in thirteen years.
Due to the comfortable 5-2 win in the first leg, very few observers had any doubts about the progress of the Madrilenians. In the previous seasons, Real was occasionally in danger of losing a clear lead, especially in duels against Juventus and Chelsea, but such a historic turn of events was not allowed this time. Also thanks to Kroos, the home team always dominated the game – and with it Liverpool. The performance earned him the approval of his unsuspicious coach. Kroos played “very well” and determined the rhythm of the match as planned, Ancelotti stated objectively.
Spain’s media praised his performance much more enthusiastically. The Madrid-based daily newspaper ABC wrote that the former German world champion conducted an “inexhaustible orchestra”. Also the sports journal As headlined: “Kroos conducts, Klopp dimits.” The regional paper even compared him to a tuxedo The voice of Galicia: Kroos is such an “extraordinary piece” for his club that “exudes elegance, self-confidence and power to the highest degree” and “always works” on “big occasions”. The clashes with Liverpool are obviously particularly important to him.
Even in the dressing room before kick-off, it was clear in a way what makes Kroos special
Because the “Reds” around coach Jürgen Klopp have almost no other player as difficult as with Kroos, 33, who seems almost immune to the opposing power football. When in possession of the ball, he is neither disturbed by Liverpool’s high-intensity forechecking, nor does he ever lose track of things. In all six games with Madrid against Klopp’s Liverpool, Kroos was on the pitch, only three weeks ago he was weakened by the flu and was not in the starting XI. The record: five wins and one draw, including the Champions League wins in 2018 and 2022.
Even in the dressing room before kick-off, it was clear in a way what makes Kroos special. With enviable composure, he pulled a training jacket over his jersey before the teams walked in and radiated a self-confidence among his teammates that almost no other player has before an important game. Even seasoned professionals usually look tense at such moments and nervously teeter back and forth. Kroos, on the other hand, just stood there and looked calm – just like he played afterwards.
He let the ball spin, always saw the free teammate and withstood great pressure from the opponent. He kept shifting the game, with short and long passes that looked so plausible and casual that anyone could pull them off. The Sports Journal Brand felt it a “privilege” to experience how “the blond metronome combines a millimeter-precise short passing game with measured, long passes”. At times it actually seemed like Kroos was a mechanical ball distributor because of his flawlessness.
This is probably also related to his huge pool of game situations, from which he can draw in order to correctly assess which action is required in each case. Much like Benzema introduces the much younger Vinicius as his successor in attack, Kroos appears to be passing on his knowledge to midfielder Eduardo Camavinga. Brand therefore advised the 20-year-old: “Watch and learn, boy!” Kroos is said to be ready to extend his expiring contract in Madrid by another year. Coach Ancelotti believes the “humanity of the veterans” is the key to success, they simply have “no ego”.
Even if Kroos, like some of his advanced professional age teammates, no longer consistently manages to call up his own top level in every game, the experience in the Champions League is invaluable. It makes Real Madrid, as defending champions, the favorite again for the handle cup. Presumably only FC Bayern from the remaining clubs in the competition is surrounded by a similar aura of victory as the European Cup record winner. Real currently has almost no weaknesses in the team, and the squad has at least one exceptional talent in every position. And the last five premier class titles in nine years are taking pressure anyway.
After being substituted, Toni Kroos sat on the bench. He was holding an ice pack on his right thigh and looked pretty tired and drained – but also very happy.
