In recent weeks, a man the German men's national team desperately needed, returned to the team and just 7 seconds into his first game, he showed the world and Germany a little of what he provides with a pass from the middle of the pitch for Wirtz.
That assist was just a little part of his game and does not in any way epitomise the essence of his football and we are starting to think perhaps, that is why Toni Kroos is not regarded among the best midfielders to ever grace this “beautiful” game of football.
We will explain more shortly but first, let’s take a look at some of the names people mention whenever there is talk of the GOAT midfielders.
Who are the GOAT Midfielders for Most People & Why?
Whenever you hear a group of people talk about the best midfielders the game of football has seen, you will be sure to hear names like Iniesta, Xavi, Pirlo, Zidane, and when there are English-crazed fans in there, Scholes, Gerrard and Lampard all even get a shout out.
Now, what about these players makes them very high on the list of football fans as the best midfielders of all time? Well as is said, the devil is in the details, or should I say, the numbers.
Let’s take a look at the numbers for some of these GOAT midfielders, shall we?
According to Transfermarkt, Andres Iniesta managed 136 assists and 57 goals for Barca in 674 games, while his partner in midfield and now coach of the same team, Xavi, got in 767 games, 185 assists and 85 goals for Barca.
Andrea Pirlo got 71 assists and 41 goals for AC Milan in 401 games, and 38 assists and 19 goals in 164 games for Juve, while Zinedine Zidane managed 68 assists and 49 goals for Real Madrid in 227 games, and 50 assists and 31 goals in 212 games for Juve.
For the English guys, Scholes got 155 goals and 82 assists for United in 716 games while Stevie G got 186 goals and 157 assists in 710 games for Liverpool.
Notice anything common in the goal contributions of all these legendary midfielders? The very number and volume of their goals and assists are not jokes, right?
Now, here is why Toni Kroos is overlooked in the GOAT Debate
Now, can we look at Toni’s goal contribution numbers? Kroos has 96 assists and 28 goals for Real Madrid in 455 games, and 49 assists and 24 goals for his 205 games for Bayern.
Not bad right? But not quite as huge as Xavi and Iniesta’s or Gerrard and Scholes is it? Zidane and Pirlo’s combined goals and assists for their two clubs are 198 and 169 respectively.
What you won’t notice is that Toni Kroos has a combined 197 goals and assists for Madrid and Bayern. Surprising isn’t it? But you can be forgiven for thinking Toni Kroos does produce these kinds of figures in assists and goals.
Who is Toni Kroos?
Why? Because like I said earlier, goals and assists are not the thing Toni Kroos does best. They are not the stand-out qualities and attributes of his gameplay and that is just fact.
According to his coach Zindane, “He is so good that he could play as a six or even as a 10. You put him in and he adapts. His main virtue is his serenity, he's calm. He's not nervous and loves reaching out to shoot from a distance as much as making a back pass."
According to Julian Nagelsmann: “Side-way pass Toni Kroos? Anyone who says that unfortunately has no idea about football.”
Pep Guardiola described him as “Someone who is always there. In that sense, he is an amateur. This means he just really likes to play football, it doesn’t matter whether it’s in the Champions League or the first round of a cup game it doesn’t matter.
“He can play 60 games at the top level, never injured, and always at the top for many seasons. He always wants to play. He is very intelligent and rational and very calm but in the most difficult moments, he is the bravest of all”.
Like Pep rightly said, the player to have dominated the passes completed, pass into the final third, long passes completed, and the pass accuracy metrics for about 7 seasons in Europe, is who Toni Kroos is and he is what a “midfielder” should be.
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