At 4:00 a.m. Beijing time on March 10, the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, Real Madrid returned home to face Paris Saint-Germain. In the first leg of the battle, Real Madrid lost 0-1. Back at the Santiago Bernabeu, Real Madrid face a real life-and-death battle. On the afternoon of March 8, Real Madrid sent good news: the absolute core Kroos was involved in training, which meant that he could catch up with the Champions League battle.
Kroos returns to training
On March 2, during Real Madrid's team training, Kroos injured his left hamstring. At the first time, the Real Madrid team doctor gave the conclusion that Kroos was determined not to qualify for the second leg of the Champions League between Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.
Real Madrid ceremonial midfielder
If Kroos is absent, that's bad news for Real Madrid. Real Madrid in zidane's era staged a three-consecutive Champions League miracle, kroos, Modric, Casemiro 3 people, composed of the "ceremonial midfield" solo football. Kroos is good at organizing, splitting, scheduling, and controlling, and the more such a life-and-death battle is, the more a master like Kroos is needed.
The good news is that Kroos' injuries are not serious. On the afternoon of March 8, only 36 hours before the Champions League life and death battle, a familiar figure appeared on the training ground of Real Madrid - the 32-year-old Kroos returned. Marca pointed out that Kroos began normal training and the German core felt good physically and would be in the Champions League squad. Whether Kroos can start or not will need to be decided at the last minute.
"Marca" said that in order to catch up with the Champions League life-and-death battle, Kroos worked very hard, and Ancelotti also hoped that the German could play, he was the core of Real Madrid's attack and defense. In the case of the suspension of Casemuro at the back and full-back Mendy, the presence of Kroos is crucial - the long pass scheduling of K8 can connect the tactics of the combination of the wing, and the defender grabs the ball, which is usually left to him to handle.
Cross
In the 2021-22 season, Kroos made 18 appearances for Real Madrid in La Liga, all of which were starters, scoring 1 goal, delivering 3 assists, averaging 2.3 threatening passes per game, with a pass success rate of 95%; in the Champions League, Kroos scored 2 goals in 6 games, with a pass success rate of 94.8%. In whoscored's ratings, Kroos averaged 7.3 points per game, which is extremely good data. Both Zidane and Ancelotti see Kros as an offensive and defensive hub.
What if Kroos is not 100% physically fit? Marca pointed out that Ancelotti also had a backhand. Kamawenga and Valverde are two young, dynamic midfielders paired with veteran Modric. The advantage of this combination is that Real Madrid can play a crazy rhythm of attack, and the disadvantages are obvious - there is no absolute control ability.
Real Madrid are expected to start
Courtois/Carvajal, Militão, Alaba, Marcelo/Valverde, Camaringa, Modric/Rodrigo, Benzema, Venicius