Yeah. Thats a terrible basis of passing prowess. Xavi and Iniesta never broke 20 a season assists i believe.
Kroos is literally one of the best midfielders in history. He might be passed it physically right now, but if you can’t see how good he was, I dunno what to tell you.
"If you don't see anything special and the entire world sees it, there is something wrong with the way you watch, understand and appreciate football " - Unknown
Kroos on his recent podcast talking to his brother, recorded before the match vs City: "Whether i keep playing or not, this might be my last semi final. These don't just happen every year, and i'm becoming aware that this might be the end of our generation, of mine, of Modric, of Benzema, of all the others that were part of this success. We also have a lot of young players that are right there behind us ready to pick up, so you're coming to realize how important these moments are."
🎯 Toni Kroos made 123 accurate passes in Real Madrid's 2-1 win at Sevilla on Saturday night, a record in a La Liga match this season pic.twitter.com/prB1gdVNUK— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) May 28, 2023
This reminds me of Busquets; people without knowledge of the game will say he's useless or overrated. "You watch the game, you don't see Busquets. You watch Busquets, you see the whole game." – Vicente del Bosque. Similarly Kroos brings intelligence, passing, vision, etc. that usually goes unnoticed as most fans focus on the attacking third.
True and IMO any player on any team will struggle with this, I don’t care who that player is or how old he is, the key is the coordination of the “team” that’s the only way to beat such a tactic, No one player is going to blunt such tactics or even withstand it, and to be honest our “ team” was far from it’s best without the ball this season, upfront, in the middle and at the back, as we all know to beat the best the team has to work as one, we simply had too many players not gelling and not playing decent football with consistency, but back to Toni, his individual quality cannot be denied though, even now.
Kroos' agent Volker Struth Volker was on a German Podcast and said Kroos also received a life changing offer by the same way of Messi and Ronaldo, but immediately turned it down without asking how much money they offer. Said he didn't even think about it for a second. Spoke about greed, and that those moves are hurtful to a players legacy, while a player like Toni Kroos sees more value in retiring from football as a Real Madrid player. The interview was conducted before the entire issue about Benzema became public knowledge.
Kroos is one of the best players of his generation for his position, Ronaldo/Messi are two of the best all time in the sport. That’s their legacy. I get what his agent is saying and I respect Kroos for turning it down but feels a bit like who cares in the modern world unfortunately.
Benz gave his all for us and helped us to multiple trophies his legacy is solid I don’t see that changing in any way just because he or any player moves to the Middle East or China or MLS or wherever to play out their days and earn some cash, the only way I’d have a problem was if they moved to a direct rival and at their ages that’s highly unlikely
Funny how it is only offensive to some when it was Cristiano and now Benzema. When messi was heavily rumored we heard none of these utterances. Apparently some deserve while others don't and are deemed sellouts. Not even shocking.
The way I view it is every player has a different set of circumstances. I'm not judging players who pursue that offer, and I'm not judging players who don't. I understand both sides of the coin; there is no right or wrong.
This is my feeling as well. I believe athletes should pick what is best for them. As long as they don't play a game which harms the institution
agreed A player career is exactly that, HIS career. If he prioritizes money, or winning, or legacy, or family, or home, etc, he is well within his right to choose what’s most important to him Only time I get upset is when they leave taking shots at the institution
Yup although I have an additional issue, I’d be pretty unhappy if a player left us for Farca, couldn’t support that player’s decision although it is theirs to make. Wasn’t too happy seeing Sergio at PSG considering their attempts to dethrone us in the CL and how I feel about that team and management in general when it comes to that comp, but it is what it is, that’s just my particular bias, other than that players do what they gotta do like all of us.
The legend renews. Comunicado Oficial: Toni Kroos#RealMadrid | #Kroos2024— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) June 21, 2023
Kroos speaks about the deal on his podcast. Says he told the club he'd either stay for another year or retire from football, but didn't want to decide it in the middle of the season. He has already created a pathway out of football, so it's not a case where he wouldn't know what to do with himself away from the game. Took the clubs offer straight away, his agents spent 4 hours at the club, talking about Kroos took about 15 minutes. Doesn't want to feel like he's simply there to collect the money, wants to contribute and help the team win. Club was respectful and cooperated excellently during the season.
Good stuff from Kroos, he seems like a reflective person overall and grounded for the most part. Question is if he truly is focused on the team aspect will he be cool a diminishing role and sitting some big games? Another year of Modric and Kroos influencing the young kids is a good thing.. just can’t be at the expense of they must play the big ones when energy is needed.
no alpha type football player will be happy sitting down big games. Tony is no different. It will be up to Carlos to handle this, but I doubt Carlos has the power to bench Tony or Modric.
I really appreciate these insights from his podcast. Any ideas on what it is he wants to do when he retires? Do you see him going into management and coaching?