Toni Kroos is not the most eye-catching star in the world champions' squad but he's their most important.Kroos is Germany's main man
“Toni Kroos is a point of focus in our team; he has all the qualities
that you need as a midfielder,” Germany manager Joachim Low explained
ahead of their Euro 2016 opener against Ukraine.
Kroos certainly lived up to his coach’s billing. Although Germany
didn’t have it all their own way during their 2-0 win in Lille, Kroos
emphatically showed why Low holds him in such high esteem. It was a
performance in which his technical gifts and football intelligence shone
brightly.
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Playing as Germany’s left-sided holding midfielder, alongside Sami
Khedira in Low’s 4-2-3-1 system, the Real Madrid star did a beautiful
job of orchestrating so many of Germany’s most incisive passages.
With Mykhailo Fomenko’s side organising themselves into a 4-4-2
formation when defending, their two most advanced attackers – Viktor
Kovalenko and Roman Zozulya – looked to limit Germany’s ability to build
up play centrally from the back.
To get around this, Kroos cunningly drifted out to the left and
left-of-centre positions to receive possession in the spaces made vacant
by onrushing left-back Jonas Hector.
Viktor Kovalenko and Roman Zozulya essentially marked Germany
centre-backs Jerome Boateng and Shkodran Mustafi. Meanwhile, Hector
pushing forward attracted Andriy Yarmolenko’s attention and Kroos had
acres of space out on the left in which to weave his magic.
That’s precisely what he did. The 26-year-old completed an exemplary
102 of his 109 attempted passes, created five chances and embarked on
three successful dribbles.
Factoring in his sublime set-piece delivery he used to find Mustafi
for Germany’s opener, there could be no doubting Kroos’ worth in attack.
It must be noted, however, that his defensive contribution was equally important.
A key by-product from his preference to favour the left was that he
was always in ideal positions to cover for both winger Julian Draxler
and full-back Hector. Moreover, by providing this essential cover, the
counter-attacking threat of Ukraine’s dangerous right winger Yarmolenko
was substantially nullified.
Kroos’ regular communication with his team-mates underlined how vital his experience and leadership qualities are to Die Mannschaft.
When Germany drew 0-0 with familiar foes from qualifying, Poland, Kroos yet again exuded class, despite the result.
With Poland possessing a fearsome strike-force including arguably the
world’s best centre-forward in Robert Lewandowski and young Ajax
sensation Arkadiusz Milik, Kroos and his team-mates went into the match
knowing they’d have their work cut out to blunt the dynamic Polish
attack. Overall, it was something they did rather well.
196 - Only Toni Kroos (202) has made more successful passes at Euro 2016 than Granit Xhaka. Flow.
The Poles also had the likes of Grzegorz Krychowiak, Jacob
Blaszczykowski and Bartosz Kapustka in their ranks. As a result, Kroos
in particular showed his class to slightly alter his mindset to a more
defensive one to deal with the multifaceted Polish threat.
In the process, the Madrid man wonderfully displayed why he’s such an
adaptable footballer who can manage different games and scenarios with
aplomb.
Crucially, however, he didn’t let this hinder his attacking impetus,
for the majority of Germany’s most promising forward passages were
instigated by him. Kroos certainly couldn’t be blamed for his team’s
inability to score in the 0-0 draw, in a match where he completed 100
passes and manufactured three goalscoring opportunities.
When Kroos was quizzed on whether he’s in the best form of his
career, his response gave an insight into how good he’s feeling about
his game.
“Am I at the peak of my career? I’ve played at quite a high level for
a few years now,” he nonchalantly mused. “I feel the same way I always
do. I’m quite relaxed. There is no reason not to be.”
Kroos, who controls games with his exquisite weight and range of
passing and provides such balance to Low’s side, will be desperate to
get the Germans back on the winners list against Northern Ireland. This
match presents itself as an important fixture, not only as Germany can
nail down top spot in their group, but also to inspire some much needed
confidence.
Two games into the tournament and Kroos has already shown his
quality, as he’s unquestionably been Germany’s best player in both of
their matches. Now he just needs his colleagues to step up, and if they
do, the world champions will have every chance of success at this
summer’s showpiece too.
While Kroos may not be Germany’s most eye-catching operator, he’s arguably their most important.
Kroos is Germany's main man
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