Real Madrid: Ranking the top 5 players at October break

CM Toni Kroos

Toni Kroos suffered an adductor injury in Real Madrid’s 4-2 win over Granada, as he was forced to leave the pitch for fellow veteran center midfielder Luka Modric. But in those 33 minutes against Granada, Kroos was absolutely brilliant, providing three key passes.

There are only a handful of players in Europe who are on Kroos’s level as a chance creator, seeing as how he’s averaging an insane 3.3 key passes per game for Real Madrid this season. He even had eight key passes as the clear standout performer in Real’s 2-2 draw with Club Brugge, as the needed Kroos’s chance creation to complete a furious comeback for a point in the group table.

Kroos has played a more advanced role under Zinedine Zidane this season, which bodes well for the 29-year-old as he continues to transition into the next stage of his career. His longshots are a fright for any keeper, and he could have easily broken the deadlock in “El Derbi” at the Wanda if it weren’t for superstar keeper Jan Oblak being more than game for his dangerous efforts.

This has been a banner year for Kroos thus far, as he’s more than bounced back from a poor 2018-2019 campaign. Defensively, Kroos has been asked to press more than track back, and Fede Valverde’s emergence could help Kroos continue to show off all of his best qualities as a passer and attacking presence.