Toni KROOS

• Germany

Toni Kroos (born 4 January 1990) is a German former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time, he was known for his vision, pinpoint precision passing, crossing, and set-piece ability.[note 1] Kroos played mainly as a central midfielder and occasionally played as a defensive midfielder. He is (along with Thomas Müller) the most decorated German football player, having won 34 trophies over his 17 year career.[16] Kroos began his senior club career at Bayern Munich, where he debuted at age 17 in 2007. He was used sparingly for Bayern and he went on loan to fellow Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen for 18 months, where he became a key contributor. He returned to his parent club in 2010. With Bayern, Kroos won three Bundesliga titles (including two consecutive titles), a UEFA Champions League, two DFB-Pokal trophies, and was named in the Bundesliga Team of the Season three times. In 2014, he joined Real Madrid for a €25 million transfer.[17] In Madrid, Kroos won twenty-one trophies, including four La Liga titles and five UEFA Champions League trophies, three of which he won consecutively from 2016 to 2018. He was named in the Champions League team of the season each time. He was named in the FIFA FIFPRO World 11 four times, UEFA Team of the Year three times, and the La Liga Team of the Season twice.[18][19] He was named the IFFHS World's Best Playmaker in 2014 and German Footballer of the Year in 2018 and 2024.