The 'new Kroos' is in love, but Toni hasn't gone anywhere

One of the most pleasant surprises at the start of Real Madrid's season is the explosion of the club's young talents. Real Madrid are delighted with the performances of Rodrygo and Fede Valverde and there are many hopes in the Uruguayan in particular, because of the breath of fresh air that he has given to the midfield.

Everyone is comparing Valverde to Toni Kroos, but the German has shown at the start of the season that there is no need to look for a substitute for him yet. Much the opposite.

Called up by Germany after not participating in the October internationals, Kroos shone with a huge performance against Belarus.

The Real Madrid midfielder got the assist to make it 2-0 and rounded off his great game by scoring Germany's third and fourth goal.

Criticised for his poor performance in 2018-19 and surprisingly given a contract renewal by Real, he has managed to lift his head up with a start to the season that almost no one imagined.

Against Celta, he scored in matchday 1 of La Liga and also put in a good performance against Osasuna (2-0) and Brugge (2-2), in a match where he set up the goal for Casemiro in 85th minute as Real Madrid salvaged a point.

He was key against Galatasaray, saving Los Blancos as they won 1-0. And he continued to shine against Leganés (he made it 2-0) and Galatasaray at the Bernabéu.

Like Hazard, the match with his national team has got him playing at his best again and has made him untouchable in Real's midfield.

The Real squad are back after the international break and will continue to leave Zidane with a decision to make who already knows that he has two identical players when it comes to putting together the midfield. But... Why can't they play more together?