Toni Kroos spots moment Bayern Munich let it slip: “Real Madrid thrive in end-to-end chaos”

Toni Kroos took a close look at the tie between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich on the Einfach mal luppen podcast, which he co-hosts with his brother Felix, reflecting on the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, which ended in a 2-1 win for the German side. With the return leg at the Allianz already looming, the former Madrid midfielder addressed the following points:

First leg: “What happened in the game did not surprise me, although Bayern delivered an excellent performance, but what happened after they went 2-0 up was the most striking aspect mentally. In recent years, Bayern have put in good performances against Real Madrid, but in the second legs they often fail to maintain their level or finish the job, and small details end up affecting them.”

Mental factor: “Let me explain. The 2-0 lead should have been enough to close out the game mentally and remove any doubt about the outcome, but what surprised me was that Bayern started to drop back and defend with less intensity.”

Doubts: “At that moment, Bayern had total control of the game and I expected them to keep dominating or even extend the lead. I thought they would maintain control through possession or add a third, fourth and perhaps even a fifth goal, but the exact opposite happened.”

Mbappé’s goal: “The mistake Upamecano made against Vinícius was a turning point in the game. After that, Real Madrid showed their character and created several dangerous chances between the 60th and 75th minutes despite trailing 2-0.”

DNA: “In my opinion, Real Madrid are the most dangerous team in the world when games turn into offensive chaos and go end to end; that is a style they love. That is why Real Madrid came close to equalizing. The game could have ended 3-3, but it finished 2-1. From my point of view, Bayern should have been able to manage the game better, either by protecting the two-goal lead or by taking advantage of the spaces to make it 3-1 or 4-1.”

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