Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, and German national team legend Toni Kroos has played alongside and against the elite of the elite midfielders throughout his career and has written himself into the annuls of the game's greats with everything he's achieved. In some ways, it doesn't feel all that long ago that Kroos decided to hang up his boots for good in the summer of 2024, but in other ways, it already feels like it's been quite some time since he's last been on the pitch for club or country.

When all was said and done, Kroos won a total of 34 trophies between club and country in what was a truly colorful, masterful career. His silverware haul included six Champions Leagues, five UEFA Supercups, four La Liga titles, three Bundesliga titles, three DFB-Pokals, four Spanish Supercups, one Copa del Rey, two German Supercups, and of course the 2014 World Cup with Germany in Brazil.

Kroos was also named German footballer of the year in both 2018 and 2024 and was selected three, separate times for the FIFA FIFPRO World 11 (2014, 2016, and 2017) among a laundry list of individual accolades.

The dual midfield pivot of Kroos and Luka Modrić at Real Madrid was absolutely unplayable on their day and Kroos also paired the likes of legends like Xabi Alonso, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Casemiro, and Thiago Alcantara throughout his career.

However, on a recent episode of Kroos' "Einfach mal Luppen" podcast (via @MadridXtra), he had his pick of his top five midfielders of all time, which included a pair of Barcelona legends.

Kroos' Top Five Midfielders

For his top five midfielders of all time, Kroos picked Modrić, Andres Iniesta, Xavi, Steven Gerrard, and Michael Ballack, all of whom he either played with or against at one point or another bar Ballack.

Of course, while Kroos has made his own top five list, others might even suggest that the former German international should be on the list, especially considering he and Modrić shared the pivot at Real Madrid for such a long period at the club. Nonetheless, it's hard to argue against the five players Kroos named while there's certainly a bevy of different midfielders that might be included depending on who you'd ask.

It's also a blessing to have been able to witness the serial success that both Kroos and Modrić were able to achieve at Real Madrid, as the pair of central midfielders won a total of 24 titles together, an impressive tally rivalled by Iniesta and Xavi who won over 30 club and international trophies together.