Real Madrid: Ranking the top 5 players for the month of March
2. Toni Kroos
I’m never tired of writing about Toni Kroos’ brilliance. He is such an amazing footballer that every move he makes, every pass he makes and every decision he takes just keep you wondering about this man’s quality and intelligence. The games in March weren’t any different, particularly the ones against Atalanta and Celta Vigo.
Atalanta is a fearsome team. They know how to suffocate their oppositions, and force the opposition players into mistakes with their high press. They tried to do the same with Toni Kroos, but he had different plans. He positioned himself perfectly to receive the ball without any obstacle and then used his first touch, long passing skills and bi-footed nature to utmost perfection that Atalanta had no clue of how to dispossess him.
The Celta game was better for him number-wise, as he got two assists to Karim Benzema, to show for. The second assist was a result of Toni Kroos’ hard work off the ball, but the first assist was something else. The first assist was a piece of art, as Toni Kroos dribbled past the Celta player, before making a piercing pass to a stationary Karim Benzema, as soon as he came inside the offside line.
That pass made to Benzema had the perfect timing, and it requires Kroos to watch the situation carefully, and then take a split-second decision of when to pass the ball. These little things in Toni Kroos’ game just make you think about his gameplay and IQ. He has his own limitations, but the usage of his strengths to such perfection has made him the best midfielder he is today.