When the game is deadlocked, what can Real Madrid rely on to break the balance of the game? Previously, Real Madrid could rely on the individual abilities of Cristiano Ronaldo or Bale, and sometimes on Marcelo's dribbling crosses from the flanks or Modric's long-range shots. However, in many cases, Real Madrid also has a "secret weapon" that can be threatened at any time, that is, to win with Tony Kroos's accurate set-piece cross.
Since joining Real Madrid, Kroos has been the main penalty shooter of Real Madrid set-pieces, his excellent footwork allows him to accurately find teammates in the penalty area, especially Real Madrid captain Ramos is a master of the competition, therefore, Kroos and Ramos's connection has repeatedly saved Real Madrid, helping Real Madrid to score goals in the case of not necessarily having an advantage in the scene, and the connection between Kroos and Ramos is also jokingly called "Tony with water".
Real Madrid and Valladolid match, Tony Kroos's set-piece once again became the magic weapon for Real Madrid to win, only this time, due to Ramos's absence due to injury, the Real Madrid captain could not continue to carry out "high-altitude bombing" in the penalty area, fortunately, Real Madrid also had Varane, Nacho, Casemiro... This time, "Tony with water" turned into "Tony Fat Tiger", and in the 65th minute, Kroos's free-kick from the right drew a wonderful arc, and Casemiro in the penalty area jumped high to head the ball and helpEd Real Madrid rewrite the score. It was with this goal that Real Madrid won four consecutive league games, narrowing the point gap with Atletico to three points.
Kroos' form has been better this season than last season, especially in the last five games, Kroos has delivered five assists, helping Casemiro, Eden Hazard, Asensio and Benzema score goals. In the match against Valencia, Kroos passed the ball to Benzema in the front of the box in a counter-attack to shoot from a distance; in the match against Levante, Kroos helped Asensio score with a long-range direct plug that crossed half the pitch; and in the match with Alaves, Kroos assisted Casemiro and Hazard scored. In addition to his best set-piece crosses, Kroos can also use quick forward passes to accurately find better teammates and help the team break through the opponent's defense.
Compared with previous seasons, one of the biggest changes in Kroos this season is that there are more forward passes with a certain degree of adventure, and in this season's La Liga creation opportunity list, Kroos surpassed Messi, Aspars, Navas and other players to rank first; at the same time, after joining Real Madrid, Kroos has provided 51 assists for Real Madrid, ranking fourth among all La Liga players, behind Messi, Suarez and Benzema, the most midfielders.
Kroos, who played in many positions during bayern Munich, was also a forward player who played in the front of the box, and during that period, Kroos was closer to the goal and scored more goals. However, after joining Real Madrid, Kroos's goal statistics have declined, because he is farther away from the goal in the real madrid activity area: at the beginning of joining Real Madrid, Kroos once took over Xavi Alonso as a back, Casemiro became the main back of Real Madrid, Kroos's position was changed to left midfield, with C Ronaldo and Marcelo forming the left side of Real Madrid, and now, the teammates around him have been replaced by Hazard (Vinicius) and Mendy, but Kroos is still the player who is active in the left half of the Real Madrid midfield.
After playing for Real Madrid for more than six years, The biggest impression kroos left on the outside world is his high pass success rate. Even in la Liga that pays attention to pass control and cooperation, it is difficult to find a stable and efficient "passing machine" like Kroos, before in the real Madrid attack and defense conversion, Marcelo is mainly responsible for launching the attack, C Ronaldo is the most important firepower point in the front of Real Madrid, and Kroos, who is in between, is an important connection point between real Madrid's attack and defense, when the operation of the ball is stuck in a condensation, Kroos, who always observes the stadium and reacts quickly, can always use a precise pass to make the situation suddenly enlightened.
However, there have also been criticisms that Kroos' passing options are too conservative, and he prefers to pass the ball in a safe way, and rarely tries adventurous straight balls as often as the traditional Spanish midfielder. This may have something to do with the player's habits of mind: Kroos passes are always as far as possible for the purpose of retaining the ball, and Kroos does not risk losing the ball unless the opportunity is particularly rare or requires a wide range of transfers. Guti, who previously played for Real Madrid, and Valerón, the former core of the A Coruña midfield, were both famous "straight-forward experts" in La Liga, but Kroos was not such a player.
However, this season, as Real Madrid's tactical playing style has changed, Kroos is also changing his way of playing. Less good at "blitzkrieg" to solve the battle of Ronaldo and Bale, with a small range of passing is known for Isco and Marcelo also faded out of the main lineup, Real Madrid need to rely more on the rapid cooperation of the midfield to create scoring opportunities, so Kroos also chooses more direct ways to deal with the ball, he will give the ball to Benzema or Hazard and other frontcourt attackers, so that the forward players can directly attack the goal after receiving their own passes. In addition, the power of Kroos's set-pieces should not be underestimated, not only Ramos, but also players such as Varane, Benzema and Casemiro benefited from Kroos' passes.
In La Liga, Kroos showed his understanding of football in a unique way, this is Cross's style of playing, most of the time, he will choose the most appropriate and safest way to pass the ball after a quick thought in the brain, but when the opportunity comes, Kroos will also quickly "switch modes", in a fleeting moment with a pass or "stick to the ground" and other ways to tear apart the opponent's defense, on the court, Kroos's brain at any time to maintain high-speed operation, capture the opportunity on the pitch, perhaps because of this, Kroos, whose playing style is not ostentatious, will save Real Madrid frequently. (Santiago-Wang)