Let us all agree on one truth from the start: there is no replacing Toni Kroos. The German will go down as one of the best players of all time, unique both in today’s game and throughout the history of the sport. His skillset is unparalleled, and his mindset is what has made him so successful. Toni treated a Champions League final the same as any other match. He often noted that he never gets nervous. Never. He simply laces up his white adipures and heads out onto the pitch, doing what he does best: dictating the rhythm of the game.
From his first match with Real Madrid, it looked like he had been a part of the team for a decade, and his last few matches a decade later will look no different. Among his countless world-class qualities were his consistency and availability. The midfield engine rarely missed a game over his ten seasons with the club, and he almost never misplaced a pass.
There is no doubting that Real Madrid will be a different team next season. Losing the best midfielder in the world would create a void for any team. Kroos’ ability to switch the field of play, evade pressure, and progress the ball vertically have all been critical to Real Madrid’s system. The team will be forced to morph and mold in a new direction with a younger midfield core and the arrival of new attacking talent. The success of this season is, in large part, down to Kroos’ quality. The blueprint will be ripped up and re-written, for better or for worse.
As a player, Kroos was simply a genius, making the game look easy. His first touch alone deserves to be a football curriculum from which the game is studied. He is one of, if not the best, passers of a football the world has ever seen. Every decision on the pitch was clear, as was his final decision off the pitch: to go out on top and retire at Real Madrid. It is a feat that so few achieve. The allure to keep playing, to grab that final payday, to experience a new way of life with less pressure – most opt for that option at the end of their career. But Kroos always intended to bow out with his head held high, as a Real Madrid player. One of the greatest in club history.
Kroos will never be replaced, but he will long be remembered. The team will have to learn to play without him. Over the last several years, legends have departed the club one by one – and Toni Kroos may leave the largest void yet.
