Why Toni Kroos Is Fast Becoming a Key Cog for Real Madrid

Everything is falling into place for Toni Kroos.

At the end of August when Real Madrid caved in at Anoeta, crushed 4-2 by a rampant Real Sociedad after taking a two-goal lead, questions were asked.

How could Los Blancos lose two key figures from their Champions League-winning midfield in Angel Di Maria and Xabi Alonso without adequately replacing them? Why sign Kroos, when you already have Luka Modric?

The two-and-a-half months since then have explained everything, with Kroos coming to the fore and making Real Madrid seem like a team that will be extremely difficult to stop.

At first, his signing didn't seem to make a great deal of footballing sense. Everybody knew he was an excellent player from his time at Bayern Munich, but Real Madrid enjoyed great success with Xabi Alonso and Modric at the base of the midfield and Di Maria playing a dynamic role ahead of them.

Michael Probst/Associated Press

Kroos can't play in any of those positions—at least not naturally. However, he has adapted his game to replace Alonso, who went to Bayern.

At Bayern Munich, the German was used to playing a far more advanced role than the one he holds in Carlo Ancelotti's side at the moment.

Many thought that Madrid were signing him to replace Di Maria, being a more accurate and less explosive playmaker, rather than to play in a deeper role.

But he has forged a brilliant partnership with Croatia star Modric in the heart of midfield, and together they passed the acid test: the visit of Barcelona to the Santiago Bernabeu.

Andres Kudacki/Associated Press

They helped Madrid dominate that match, beating Barcelona at their own game. It's been some time since we've seen Madrid so in control in a Clasico.

Kroos admits he needed to adjust to his new position at Madrid, according to AS, h/t Football Espana:

"

It was important that from the first day the coach had confidence in me. Ancelotti said he needed me and has given me a central role in the team. In a telephone conversation he said I could make Madrid better.

The coach wants more balance in our play, a little more control. He said he wants our play to get better, to change, to have more phases of possession. And he told me he needed me.

I’m a central midfielder and 10 yards back than at Munich. Really, I’m a No. 6. I've not forgotten the attacking side but for the moment I’m more a No. 6.

Pep [Guardiola] told me at the start: ‘Toni, the best players move further back during their careers.’ With Ancelotti I could go the same way.

"

We've seen Kroos trying to find his range with regards to shooting in the first few months of the season and eventually doing so against Rayo Vallecano.

Andres Kudacki/Associated Press

His beautifully steered drive from distance, which curved perfectly into the bottom-right corner, was purred over by anyone who saw it, in much the same way his slick passing and off-the-ball movement is heralded.

His manager, Ancelotti, is a huge fan. Per Onda Cero, h/t ESPN, he said:

"

Kroos is another professor. He has graduated from Xabi Alonso's university very quickly. He surprises me because he is never worried. If he is under pressure or not, his play is always the same.

I do not know his best position. He can always improve in the position he is playing, but at this moment it is not easy to see how. He plays the ball quickly, always the right pass, he does not give the ball away, he wins it back. Modric is also there—another complete midfielder.

"

Now we're starting to see the player that Pep Guardiola was so fond of at Bayern Munich.

In the excellent Marti Perarnau book Pep Confidential, it was demonstrated just how much the former Barcelona manager loved Kroos.

Paul White/Associated Press

Even though he had a year to go on his contract, Real Madrid signing him for €25 million was a bargain.

There are still some challenges to overcome; when Europe's most physical top teams come calling we'll see if the Modric-Kroos axis has enough muscle to withstand heavy pressure.

But for now, Madrid are flying. And Kroos is a key cog in their system, integral to their early success.