Exclusive: Owen Hargreaves describes Toni Kroos as one of the greatest footballers of all time, with a unique and unparalleled talent.

Owen Hargreaves, the former England midfielder, has heaped praise on German legend Toni Kroos, describing him as a “one-of-one” and an “all-time great” of the game.

Kroos, who is 34 years old, recently announced that he will be retiring after this summer’s European Championship tournament in Germany, hoping to end his illustrious career on a high note.

Before his retirement, Kroos will also feature for Real Madrid in this year’s Champions League final, which can be watched live on TNT Sports and discovery+ on June 1. He will be aiming to lift the trophy for the fifth time.

Kroos has already helped Real Madrid secure the La Liga title this season, which is his fourth in the club’s colors since joining from Bayern Munich in 2014.

Hargreaves, who witnessed Kroos’ arrival at Bayern as a teenager, spoke highly of his former teammate and his remarkable rise to the top of the game. He recalled, “I remember him coming to the Bayern first team when he was 16. We signed him from Hansa Rostock. He was tiny! I remember our president at the time saying ‘this guy is going to be a number 10 one day’. And he was right.”

Hargreaves continued, “I don’t think anybody could have envisioned he would have been this great. Probably one of the all-time greats really. Luca (Modric), Toni, depends who you like, but he’s put himself in the mix I think as one of the all-timers. Shame he’s retiring really because the way he plays and the way he sees the game, he could play until 38-39 because he doesn’t rely on physical traits.”

The former England midfielder also commended Kroos for his ability to adapt his role and become one of the best players in the world in his position. Hargreaves noted, “He came through as a number 10. And then obviously he moved to Real Madrid and there probably wasn’t space for a number 10. Because of Bale, Benzema, Ronaldo, he probably played a little bit deeper, and then he became this ball-playing quarterback at the back, where, you know, historically the defensive midfield player was like me, defensive! Toni played that position beautifully. Just because he’s so smart, and an amazing player. Young players, if you want to play like somebody, Toni is your guy!”

Despite the loss of Kroos, Hargreaves expressed confidence in Real Madrid’s ability to find a suitable replacement. While acknowledging that they may not find a like-for-like replacement, he mentioned the club’s options within the squad as well as their ability to identify potential new signings.

Hargreaves highlighted Florian Wirtz, a German player who has impressed at Bayer Leverkusen this season, as a potential option for Real Madrid. “We’re all trying to recreate these players and cultures and stuff. You can’t, you know, they’re just one of one. To be fair, Real Madrid’s recruitment has been amazing. They’ve got Tchouameni, they’ve got Camavinga. I can see like a Florian Wirtz-type player. I think Jude (Bellingham) is probably going to play a little bit deeper next season. There’s so many great players. Real have an unbelievable team coming together. It will be interesting to see who they get to fill that void. They’ve got so many options, and the thing is that right now, they don’t need anything so they can just sit and wait until they get the Tetris piece that fits in perfect.”