Memorable moments: Kroos curls the ball from a corner straight into the net

You won’t find many players in the world with better technique than Toni Kroos. The German midfielder proved it again in January 2020 when he turned the execution of a corner kick into an instant goal.

A corner kick is a great way for a lot of teams to score a goal. If you have a good enforcer and a couple of good headers, any standard situation can be dangerous.

This has been true for many years at Real Madrid. Indeed, since 2014, Toni Kroos has regularly played the vast majority of corners and direct kicks here, with Luka Modric deputising for him where appropriate.

And there have been headers from the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos, Gareth Bale, Casemiro and Raphael Varane. So every corner was a huge danger.

But in January 2020, Kroos decided to take all the responsibility on his shoulders. In the semi-final of the Spanish Super Cup against Valencia, he saw a great opportunity.

In the 15th minute, Real had a corner kick. Kroos noticed that the Doménech goalkeeper was not paying attention and curled the ball straight into the net. Valencia’s goalkeeper got a touch on the ball, but he only knocked it into the net.

In addition, Real Madrid’s Isco added a second goal before half-time and Los Blancos’ third midfielder, Luka Modric, also scored in the second half. For the visitors, Parejo made it 1:3 from the penalty spot.

Real Madrid advanced to the first ever Spanish Super Cup final played in Saudi Arabia. They beat Atlético Madrid and won on penalties.

Source: Youtube