Toni Kroos brought the curtain down on his club career in style as he helped Real Madrid win yet another Champions League title on Saturday.
Los Blancos withstood immense pressure from German side Borussia Dortmund before second-half goals from Dani Caravajal and Vinicius Jr delivered their record 15th all-time Champions League crown — as well as their sixth in 11 years.
Joining from Bayern Munich in 2014, Kroos has been a key part of five of those continental successes, as well as four La Liga title runs and a Copa del Rey triumph.
The 34-year-old recently announced he will retire from football following Euro 2024 — where he has been named in Julian Nagelsmann’s Germany squad that will look to win the tournament as hosts.
Kroos signs off in style
Kroos leaves Real Madrid having made 465 appearances for the club across all competitions, scoring 28 goals and registering 99 assists.
One of those assists was to set up Carvajal from a corner on Saturday as Real Madrid went 1-0 up at Wembley. However, that only tells a small part of the story as Kroos put in yet another stunning performance for Los Blancos.
The Germany international was withdrawn to a standing ovation in the 85th minute but that was still enough time to post match-highs for touches (108), passes completed (91/94), crosses (9), possessions won (5), chances created (4) and shots on target (2).
Toni Kroos for Real Madrid in his final club game:
? Most touches (108)
? Most passes completed (91/94)
? Most crosses (9)
? Most possessions won (5)
? Most chances created (4)
? Most shots on target (2)
? = Most assists (1)Signing off in style. ?#UCLFinal pic.twitter.com/DGbLJz0qMQ
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All that remains now is for Kroos to end his career with an international title on home soil, with a potential Euro 2024 medal going nicely alongside his 2014 World Cup honour.
Ancelotti leaves door open for Kroos U-turn
Given the standards Kroos has set this season, it’s easy to imagine him carrying on for at least another year or two.
Indeed, Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti even left the door open for Kroos to change his mind on retirement following Saturday’s win over Dortmund.
“I’m really grateful to Kroos,” Ancelotti told reporters (via Sports Mole). “He finished at the very top, there is no way to finish higher than this. He had the boldness to finish it [his career] and he is a legend at this club.
“All the fans are grateful to him for his attitude, his professionalism. I’ve told him we are waiting for him to change his mind — we are waiting for you